Soil toil

Zambia: Leasing land to Kenya for maize as opposition fears mistreatment

By Chiwoyu Sinyangwe

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Posted on April 7, 2023 10:15

© Zambian opposition fears that farmers will be mistreated after Zambia signed an MoU with Kenya so their farmers can lease Zambian land and send maize for export.
REUTERS/Darrin Zammit Lupi — Zambian opposition fears that farmers will be mistreated after Zambia signed an MoU with Kenya so their farmers can lease Zambian land and send maize for export. REUTERS/Darrin Zammit Lupi

Kenya’s Agriculture Minister Mithika Linturi and his Zambian counterpart Mtolo Phiri signed an MoU in March to herald a new era of large-scale farming of maize in Zambia for export to Nairobi, but concerns by the opposition over past treatment of locals raise fears about the deal.

Kenyan representatives had first come to Lusaka looking to import about 1 million tn of white maize to meet its national deficit.

Zambia was unable to meet Kenya’s immediate grain requirements but instead offered between 20,000 hectares to 40,000 hectares for growing the crop for the Kenyan market.

The agreement would allow Zambian farmers to grow maize for exclusive export to Kenya after the country suffered its sixth consecutively failed rainy season.

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