Mambo calls for deliberate policy on rural development

Mambo calls for deliberate policy on rural development
By Ernest Chanda
Tue 16 Feb. 2010, 04:00 CAT

Bishop Mambo said it was sad to note that there was too much politicking in urban areas while the rural part of the country remained underdeveloped.
BISHOP John Mambo has called on the government to devise a deliberate policy that will compel the rich to invest more into rural areas than urban Zambia.

In an interview after touring Nyamphande Orphanage in Chongwe district, Bishop Mambo said it was sad to note that there was too much politicking in urban areas while the rural part of the country remained underdeveloped.

The former Church of God overseer and now Chikondi Foundation president said he longed for a time when all former presidents would settle in their respective areas of origin as opposed to the current scenario where all of them chose to settle in Lusaka.

“There is too much politicking in Lusaka to a point that even the corporate world has joined in. We now have a situation where everyone thinks Lusaka is Zambia; people have literally neglected rural areas.

If we really want to develop this country, I think we should consider investing in rural areas because that is where the potential is.

I long for a time when our government can formulate a deliberate policy that should compel rich people including the corporate world to invest in rural areas. Let them identify areas of need in rural Zambia and pump more resources,” Bishop Mambo said on Sunday.

“It is a sorry state to see that all our former presidents want to settle in Lusaka. Dr Kaunda who introduced the Go back to the land policy has refused to go to his Shambalakale Farm in Chinsali.

Instead he has settled in Lusaka. Frederick Chiluba has also abandoned his roots in Luapula. He has said Luapula is bad and has chosen to stay in Lusaka. One day President Rupiah Banda will also abandon Chipata and settle in Lusaka. In the end we shall have all the former presidents settling in Lusaka.”

Bishop Mambo urged the government to learn from the policies of other countries in the region and across the world.

“Most of the former US presidents have settled in their homeland. George Bush is in Texas; Bill Clinton is in Kansas, and many others. They have not said they should settle in Washington DC, no. Just across the Zambezi in Botswana, Zimbabwe and Swaziland people don’t stay in town at weekends. They go to rural areas, to their farms and villages where they have invested.

And you can’t compare Tswana villages with ours. Theirs are developed and you can’t miss anything even if you haven’t been to town for weeks. That should be our policy as well; those with resources should develop areas they hail from,” he said.

“Currently we have divided Zambia into two parts; the urban and the rural Zambia. In essence this has also created a special class of Zambians. Those in urban areas are perceived as super Zambians while those in rural areas are treated as less Zambian. To me this should not be the case because we have created a division between a common people.”

Bishop Mambo said those in authority should look at this and seriously address the situation.
“It is a time bomb that could explode some day, and the time to act is now,” said Bishop Mambo.