THE Food Reserve Agency (FRA) is owed K107.6 billion by co-operatives and private individuals.
Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Co-operatives Allan Mbewe told Parliament yesterday that this is as at December 31, 2009.

He said only K3.3 billion has been recovered from fertiliser and seed loans.
Mr Mbewe said most co-operatives did not provide collateral but that most of them have been taken to court to try and recover the money.

He said property has also been seized from some of the debtors and will be auctioned so that money realised from the sale could be paid to FRA.
Mr Mbewe was answering a question from Kanchibiya MP Davies Mwango who wanted to know how much money was owed to FRA in fertiliser and seed loans as of December 2009.

Mr Mwango also wanted to know how many people owed FRA and whether Government has continued giving fertiliser and seed loans to farmers.

“I cannot exactly tell which individuals or co-operatives owe the agency money because I have not seen the list. Government is trying hard to collect this money. FRA is not giving out any loans at the moment,” he said.
But Monze MP Jack Mwiimbu (UPND) claimed that only those who are not “politically correct” are being pursued.

He said the process of recovering money has not been transparent. Mr Mbewe said there is no one who is being favoured because of their political inclination.
When asked by Roan MP Chishimba Kambwili whether it is true that two Cabinet Ministers are among those that owe the agency, Mr Mbewe said he has not seen the list.

And Mapatizya MP Ackson Sejani (UPND) moved a motion to urge Government to urgently address the perennial constraints in the agricultural marketing system to enhance food security in the country.
The motion was seconded by Lusaka Central MP Guy Scott (PF).

In moving the motion, Mr Sejani alleged that FRA at the moment is unsuited to handle maize marketing in the country.
He said there is need for Government to restructure the agency to bring in specialised departments to handle strategic food reserves, marketing and funding.

THE Non-Governmental Organisations Coordinating Council (NGOCC) has called on political parties to help bridge the gender inequality gap by adopting women candidates at 50-50 per cent parity ahead of the 2011 presidential and general elections.

At a media briefing to launch activities in preparation for the celebrations to take place on September 23 at YWCA in Lusaka yesterday, NGOCC board chairperson Marian Munyinda said political parties must adopt more women candidates.

Ms Munyinda said in comparison with other countries such as the Democratic Republic of Congo, Tanzania, South Africa and Mozambique, Zambia had a lower number of women Cabinet ministers despite being an old democracy.

She said efforts to improve women representation in decision-making positions at both political and other levels should be scaled up.

She said while the fight for gender equality was growing old since it was started on September 25, 1985, achievements on the ground remained static and cited bickering among the women as part of the reason for the stagnation in women’s advancement.

Ms Munyinda said through member organisations such as the Zambia National Women’s Lobby Group (ZNWLB), NGOCC would identify credible women to contest for positions and adoption for candidacy at both parliamentary and presidential levels next year.

Ms Munyinda said the decision to set up the Citizens Economic Empowerment Commission (CEEC) was good but lacks a clear plan of action to allow women access the funds without difficulty.

She said NGOCC was displeased that many provisions that should have dealt with social challenges faced by women and children in part three of the Bill of Rights in the Draft Constitution had been rejected.

And NGOCC in North-Western and Copperbelt provinces launched activities to mark the commencement of celebrations the organisation’s silver jubilee in September.

NGOCC liaison officer for the two provinces, Priscilla Chama Mwansa said during the launch in Solwezi yesterday that the occasion provided an opportunity for the women to reflect on the organisation’s achievements and challenges.

In Livingstone, Ms Munyinda urged non-governmental organisations and other institutions to be transparent and accountable in their dealings to instill confidence in their members as well as beneficiaries.

Ms Munyinda said there was need for NGOs to be transparent and accountable to their members and beneficiaries of their programmes if they had to continue existing.

She said this yesterday in Livingstone in a speech read for her by NGOCC active human rights activist Jean Mweene at a Press conference to launch the 25th Silver Jubilee Anniversary celebrations.

The Zambia Police Services Victim Support Unit (VSU) has said economic violence and abuse was on the rise in most Zambian homes.

VSU National Coordinator, Senior Superintendent Tresford Kasale said it was disheartening to note that economic violence had become a common trend in most Zambian homes to settle domestic scores.

He said in most cases bread winners in Zambian homes, male or female, took advantage of their economic position to economically abuse their spouses, children and dependents.

Mr Kasale said bread winners deliberately stopped buying food and other human necessities such as clothing , medical care and education, among others in order to make their spouses fill unwanted resulting in them leaving their matrimonial homes.

The VSU National Coordinator said on the sidelines of a five- day Gender Awareness workshop for service providers at Red Roof Lodge in Lusaka’s Roma Township which started on Monday that such trends were commonly practiced in both high and low density urban areas. He noted that such practices were also part of the issues that the VSU was handling on a daily basis as breadwinners attributed prevailing economic situation in the country as the cause of them not supporting their spouses and family in general.

Mr. Kasale however advised breadwinners not use their economic situation as the reason for not supporting their families saying they should instead be transparent and honest to their spouses and families on their situation.

The workshop sponsored by the United Nations International Children’s Fund (UNICEF) is aimed at empowering service providers with adequate information on Gender Based Violence (GBV) which is said to be on the increase in the country.

The workshop has attracted service providers from nearly all corners of Zambia mainly attached to the VSU’s of police stations.
And during the preliminary of the workshop, some participants expressed concern at the law that prohibited housewives from physically reacting to their husbands’ girlfriends.

The participants said this development had actually empowered girlfriends to have undue control of most men thereby creating domestic instability in most homes.

However, Mr. Kasale advised the participants that the affected housewives should take advantage of the law of Adultery which he said was as punitive as any other law.