By 
Conflicting statements from the Ministry of Agriculture and the Food Reserve Agency (FRA) over a proposed maize export deal with the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) have raised the alarm over a lack of coordination within government institutions, the Centre for Trade Policy and Development (CTPD) has warned.
On July 18, 2025, the Ministry of Agriculture stated that the Government had not signed any Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the DRC to export one million metric tonnes of maize. This directly contradicted an earlier statement by the FRA, which had suggested such a deal was underway.
In a statement, CTPD Executive Director, Isaac Mwaipopo, said the contradictory public messaging had created confusion among stakeholders and could negatively impact Zambia’s agricultural sector.
“This misalignment reinforces the perception of policy inconsistency, especially regarding maize exports—an area that has historically affected Zambia’s competitiveness in regional markets,” Mwaipopo said.
He noted that inconsistent communication undermined confidence among farmers and private sector players who depended on clear and predictable policies to invest in irrigation, storage, and transportation infrastructure.
“Farmers need certainty to scale up production for export. This kind of confusion only fuels anxiety, particularly given Zambia’s history of abrupt export bans,” he added.
Mwaipopo further criticized the lack of coordination between the Ministry of Agriculture, which is the lead policy-making body, and the FRA, which is responsible for implementing food reserve and market stabilization strategies.
“These contradictions should have been resolved internally before being communicated to the public. This breakdown not only erodes public trust but also creates unnecessary policy ambiguity,” he said.
While commending Government’s broader efforts under the Comprehensive Agriculture Transformation Support Programme (CATSP) to improve productivity and market access, CTPD cautioned that such initiatives risked being undermined by institutional disunity.
“CTPD urges the Ministry of Agriculture to enhance coordination with the FRA to ensure unified, accurate, and timely public communication. Zambia must scale up maize production to meet both local consumption and regional export opportunities,” Mwaipopo said.
WARNING! All rights reserved. This material, and other digital content on this website, may not be reproduced, published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or in part without prior express permission from ZAMBIA MONITOR.
Comments