info.afrindex.com
China-Africa Trade Information Service
info.afrindex.com
China-Africa Trade Information Service
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Stanbic Bank Zambia has intensified its investment in the growth of Zambia’s agricultural sector by supporting agro-value chain players.
Zambia has for the last few decades been striving to diversify its economy away from copper mining to accelerate long-term sustainable growth. One of the sectors identified as a key growth sector in the 7th National Development Plan (7NDP) is agriculture.
Keegy Zambia Ltd Managing Director Chongo Kasongole says Zambia’s agro sector will not achieve true growth without mechanisation.He said: “Zambia is sitting at a crossroads. We have the potential to be a regional food basket; we have climatic and political stability. We also have the capacity to make agriculture one the country’s main drivers of the economy thanks to our vast land and water resources.
“However, the country is still a long way from feeding the sub-Saharan region due to inadequate investment in agriculture, hence the sector continues to face challenges that are hindering sustainable growth.”
Mechanisation can increase productivity by at least 50 percent according to research data from A Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) – an international organisation involved in improving agricultural products and supporting local farm owners and labour in Africa.
Africa remains one of the least mechanised continents on the planet with the World Bank estimating there are only five tractors for every 1,000 farmers; in stark contrast to an agricultural powerhouse like the USA that has 1,600 tractors for every 1,000 farmers.
