Kamukwape's Diary

Realizing that about 55 percent of Zambia's total population and 70 percent of the poor live in rural areas, and that the majority of households rely on incomes from agriculture and agriculture related industries, growth in agriculture is expected to generate jobs and create employment opportunities for the poor. With reforms which started in the early 1990's that emphasized on diversification of the economy through promotion of agriculture development, liberalization of marketing and encouragement of private sector participation resulted in some improvements in the sector. Therefore, fostering agricultural growth and rural development is recognized as important in reducing poverty in the country. In line with these efforts various strategies have been put in place to strengthen the efforts in realising the goal of the agricultural sector being "To promote increased and sustainable agricultural productivity and competitiveness in order to ensure food security; Income gener...