In 2002, Zambia experienced a shortage of food due to low production of maize as a result of two years of drought.
There was an acute hunger situation in Zambia, it was bad but not as severe as the one experienced in 2019/2020.
This was the first year of the Levy Mwanawasa presidency.
In order to help mitigate this problem, President Levy Mwanawasa and his Agriculture Minister Mundia Sikatana launched what was termed ‘The Winter Maize Project’.
The underlying thought and concept was that Zambia did not need to wait for the rains to plant maize, maize could be planted and watered through irrigation throughout the year. The result of this is that Zambia would no longer have deficits of maize, the country’s food staple.
We remember that when Levy Mwanawasa initiated this project, he was laughed at and ridiculed by many, he was mocked and many said it was too costly and too expensive to grow maize in the winter.
The winter maize project was launched in 2002, with maize being planted in May and harvested in October.
By 2003, the winter maize project was yielding 800,000 tonnes of maize per annum.
The winter maize project was a huge success.
However at the death of President Mwanawasa in 2008, the new government of President Rupiah Banda ended the winter maize program, it has never been revived since.
But in hindsight, Zambians should appreciate that Levy Mwanawasa had foresight and a good vision when it came to the winter maize program, his thinking was far ahead of its time, his kind of thinking was genius.
While winter maize can be expensive to grow, it also matures and is harvested at a time when maize prices are at their highest, because supply is at its lowest, so this concept is workable.
Moreover, government should be obliged to subsidize farmers who grow winter maize, and the FRA should offer a higher buying price for winter grown maize.
To cushion the costs of growing winter maize, farmers who participate in this program can be given a license to export 40% of their produce to Congo, where the price is 4 times higher than in Zambia, this would be a good incentive to have more farmers to participate in this program. This way farmers can make a healthy profit from growing winter maize.
The growing of winter maize can effectively eliminate hunger in Zambia and can help in reducing high mealie meal prices.
It’s about time that this idea was revisited, the ZNS, Prisons Service, Commercial farmers and indeed small scale farmers can be co-opted into the program. Generators for irrigation purposes are now generally affordable and the government can provide subsidized fuel for irrigation purposes for those who participate in a winter maize growing program.
With the right leadership, this concept and vision can be realized. -NDC