AMBASSADOR STRESSES POLICY IMPERATIVES IN GHFS

UNCLAS LUSAKA 000765 SIPDIS DEPT FOR EEB/TPP/MTAA/ABT ANN RYAN DEPT ALSO FOR IO MARISA PLOWDEN E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: EAGR EAID ETRD ZA SUBJECT: AMBASSADOR STRESSES POLICY IMPERATIVES IN GHFS INITIATIVE TO AG MINISTER REF: STATE 107298 ¶1. (U) Ambassador Booth met with Minister of Agriculture and Cooperatives Brian Chituwo on October 26 to deliver reftel points and to elicit his views on how the United States and Zambia can work together towards food security and the elimination of hunger. Chituwo told Ambassador that the agricultural sector and food security are political and economic priorities for the GRZ, and that the government expected to sign its compact under the African Union's Comprehensive Africa Agricultural Development Programme (CAADP) on November 12. (Note: The signing has been delayed until November 30. End Note) ¶2. (U) The Ambassador stressed the need for the GRZ to have a robust policy commitment to the agricultural sector. He added that while CAADP compacts required countries to spend at least 10 percent of their annual budgets on agriculture, the United States would look at not just what governments spend, but how governments spend money in the agricultural sector when deciding where to direct potential assistance under the Global Hunger and Food Security (GHFS) initiative. Specifically, the Ambassador urged Minister Chituwo to work to decrease GRZ spending on input subsidies and maize purchases, and to allow the private sector to develop markets for agricultural inputs and harvested crops. Chituwo agreed with the Ambassador that GRZ should reassess the efficacy of programs to provide fertilizer and other inputs to farmers at government expense, but claimed that the GRZ still had an active role to play. ¶3. (U) Minister Chituwo said he hoped to attend the World Food Security Summit in Rome, but said that the 2010 budget process may require him to be in Lusaka at that time. BOOTH