The Policy Monitoring and Research Center (PMRC) says it remains hopeful that the new electronic voucher administrative measures put in place by Government will continue to reinforce the initial reasons that led Government to move away from the conventional Farmer Input Support Programme (FISP).

The center hopes that the new FISP measures will be cost effective to administer, promote crop diversification, improve timeliness in inputs distribution, improve the quality of inputs, build private sector capacity in inputs marketing and distribution, provide means to easily introduce farm risk mitigation measures and ultimately improve household and national food security as well as farm incomes for smallholder farmers.

The agriculture sector is the fourth largest contributor to Gross Domestic Product (8.7 percent) and the largest contributor to employment.

The sector is critical for achieving diversification, economic growth and poverty reduction in Zambia.

One major component of the agriculture sector is the e-voucher programme, which was allocated K1,785,000,000 in the national budget (Farmer Input Support Programme – FISP budget line).

PMRC Executive Director Bernadette Deka says the e-voucher system has had its challenges and with the intervention of the Smart Zambia, there could be light at the end of the tunnel.

Ms Deka says the 2018/ 2019 farming season commences on 1st of September 2018 and that in partnership with Smart Zambia, it is therefore prudent that the government analyzes and give an update on how the e-voucher will be rolled out.

“One of the several problems faced in the last farming season with this e-voucher administration system, was that banks were not uploading money as soon as Government released funds”, she said.

“Consequently, farmers received inputs late and this contributed to poor crop yields”.

Ms Deka also notes that some banks performed exceptionally well last season regarding e-card activations.

The PMRC Executive Director further hopes that the 2018/19 farming season will be devoid of avoidable hiccups of late card activation.

Ms Deka has implored banks to continue operating optimally in their endeavors to support e-voucher implementation in the 2018/19 farming to help grow agriculture in the country.

She has since advised all farmers that have made deposits to redeem their inputs effective 1st September 2018.