Maravi

Mucheleka urges more funding to agriculture

Mucheleka urges more funding to agriculture
Written by Kabanda Chulu
Friday, October 02, 2009 8:34:57 AM

CIVIL Society for Poverty Reduction (CSPR) executive director Patrick Mucheleka has advised the government to match its rhetoric on agriculture potential with political will through increased budgetary allocation.

And economic analyst Chibamba Kanyama has urged finance minister Situmbeko Musokotwane to announce a budget that will ignore immediate short term needs of government administrative structures but should address investments, social sectors and capital projects such as road networks.

According to the 2010 to 2012 green paper (budget estimates expenditure), government has proposed to reduce allocations to the Ministry of Agriculture from K919.3 billion in 2009 to K708.6 billion in 2010 while Ministry of Health would get K1.262 trillion from the 2009 allocation of K1.333 trillion.

On the other hand, the government is projecting to give the Ministry of Defence K1.334 trillion from the 2009 figure of K 1.067 trillion and the Zambia Police under the Ministry of Home Affairs would get K535.8 billion compared with the 2009 figure of K446.3 billion.

Government is also projecting to give the Zambia Security Intelligence Services under the Office of the President K227.2 billion compared with K213.1 billion that was allocated in 2009.

But Mucheleka, in an interview yesterday, said the government should match its words with actions by realigning poverty issues with economic growth.

“You cannot reduce poverty by leaving out the majority poor and agriculture is the only sector that can help alleviate poverty and the major intervention we see is through fertiliser support but without addressing structural rigidities that should move side by side with agriculture development, the FSP does not work and farmers fail to graduate,” said Mucheleka.

“So why should government continue talking about agriculture potential which is not matched with political will through budgetary allocations? And this is against the Maputo declaration which Zambia signed to be allocating 10 per cent of its budget to agriculture.”

And Kanyama said the National Budget was not only about fiscal and monetary policy but should create opportunities for business and household prosperity.

“Unfortunately, for many years now, the national budget, on account of its size and expenditure priorities, has not performed to the expectation of many people. Many are disillusioned when seemingly pro-investment, pro-worker and pro-poor budgets are announced but with little impact,” said Kanyama.

“Government priorities do not yet appear to be in line with realities on the ground. For the 2010 budget, we expect Dr. Musokotwane to announce a budget that ignores the immediate short term needs of government administrative structures by allocating huge resources that go towards important social investments primarily in education and capital projects such as road networks.”

On October 9, 2009, Dr Musokotwane is expected to present an expected K15.12 trillion 2010 budget, (about 21 per cent of total GDP), as compared to the 2009 figure of K13.41 trillion. Government is making projections to have a total revenue of K12.25 trillion while gross domestic product (GDP) is projected at K70.82 trillion.

Labels: BUDGET, CHIBAMBA KANYAMA, CSPR, PATRICK MUCHELEKA, SITUMBEKO MUSOKOTWANE

posted by MrK @ 7:36 AM