PRESIDENT LUNGU TRANSFERS PERMANENT SECRETARIES

PRESIDENT Edgar Lungu has made changes at Permanent Secretary level with immediate effect.

The President has since transferred the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Home Affairs Dr. Peter Mwaba to the Ministry of Health in the same capacity, taking over from Dr. Davy Chikamata who moves to the Ministry of Community Development, Mother and Child Health in the same capacity.
Other changes the Head of State has made include the transfer of Professor Elwyn Chomba from the Ministry of Community Development, Mother and Child Health to the Ministry of Home Affairs in the same capacity as Permanent Secretary.

The President takes this opportunity to urge all Permanent Secretaries to be more diligent, prudent and resource management and work expeditiously to deliver public services to the people.

Esther Phiri to fight a South African

ESTHER Phiri will face Julie Tshabalala of South Africa in a welterweight unification title fight following the withdrawal of compatriot Sandra Almeida. 
And Tshabalala, 35, has vowed to ‘teach’ Esther a boxing lesson.
Esther was supposed to fight Almeida on September 18 but the South African has a busy schedule.
The budget for the fight is K700,000.
Exodus Boxing Stables director Anthony Mwamba said at a press briefing yesterday that the fight has been set for October 23 at Government Complex in Lusaka.
“All the boxing stakeholders including the Women International Boxing Association (WIBA) and the World Boxing Federation (WBF), have sanctioned this fight. It is on and preparations are under-way,” he said.
Mwamba said Tshabalala is a credible fighter.
“Tshabalala is a seasoned fighter. She has nine fights, won five, lost two and drawn two. It is going to be a tough fight,” he said.
And Esther is upbeat of overcoming the South African.
“I promise to train hard. I believe in my manager [Mwamba]. I will beat her,” she said.
And Tshabalala is ready for the fight.

‘Armed’ Rainbow Party members arrested

POLICE in Luwingu have arrested two suspected Rainbow Party members for alleged unlawful possession of a pistol.
John Siame, 37, and Peter Kashala, 30, both of Lusaka, were apprehended on Sunday around 11:00 hours at Big Brother bar in Lubansenshi.
Northern Province acting commissioner of police Lackson Sakala said in an interview yesterday that police have recovered a 4.5 millimetre calibre firearm with 12 rounds of ammunition.

DRC Tries Mega-Farms to Feed Population

Workers examine new machinery in use at the pioneering mega-farm at Boukanga Lonzo park in Democratic Republic of Congo, Aug 8, 2015. (N. Long / VOA)

The Democratic Republic of Congo is trying out a large-scale agricultural plan that is, to say the least, ambitious. The government plans to develop one mega-farm of 50,000 to 150,000 hectares per province — producing food for local consumption and also export crops. The government says the aim is to promote food security.

The park at Boukanga Lonzo currently has 5,000 hectares under cultivation. The site is on a plateau, and crops already stretch as far as the eye can see.

Isaac Saleh, who works as an economist at the prime minister’s office, says they are harvesting about 3,300 hectares of that land.

Most of the production at these mega-farms will be mechanized, but there will be some 7,000 jobs created on the farm in the near future, according to the government.  

On 1,000 hectares, the employees will be working full-time to cultivate and harvest vegetables irrigated by sprinklers rotating on 20 huge pivots.

"Each pivot is the length of a football pitch [field]," said Saleh, "and it’s big enough that vegetables under the pivot can be planted and harvested every day."

Spain finds Guinea migrant hidden behind car engine

A West African migrant entered the Spanish territory of Ceuta from Morocco curled up next to a car engine and another was hidden behind the back seat of the Mercedes-300 car.

Spanish police found the pair late on Sunday during a customs check at El Tarajal, near the Moroccan border.

The two men from Guinea got first aid, having suffered from a lack of oxygen, Spain's Guardia Civil police said.

Sub-Saharan Africans often try to enter Ceuta, as a gateway to the EU.

The Mercedes 300 was found to have false number plates. Police detained two Moroccan men who were in the car when it was stopped.

It is not clear how long the man in the engine compartment had been inhaling noxious fumes for.

The two illegal migrants did not have any papers, and were identified in the statement only as "TD and AB from Guinea Conakry". They are also under official investigation now.

Ceuta and Melilla are tiny Spanish enclaves on the North African coast, which have erected formidable border fences to keep out illegal migrants.

The fences have led some migrants to resort to extreme methods to get into Spain, such as swimming into the ports or even hiding in suitcases.

Last month, a Moroccan man suffocated to death in a suitcase after his brother tried to smuggle him to mainland Spain aboard a ferry from Melilla.

Loadshedding to increase as people over use power when restored

Kariba Dam

THE current load shedding will increase following a reduction in daily electricity production capacity at Kariba North Bank Power station from 500 megawatts (MW) to 305 MW due to reduced water allocation by Zambezi River Authority (ZRA).
Meanwhile, Zesco senior manager-marketing and public relations Bessie Banda says customers should use electricity responsibly when power is restored to avoid having the power station shut down prematurely due to lack of water for power generation.
ZRA allocates water for power generation to Zesco and the Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority (ZESA) annually, but subject to quarterly reviews based on water levels at Kariba Dam.
Ms Banda told a media briefing in Lusaka on Monday that in the first quarter of 2015, ZRA revised water allocation to Zesco and ZESA from 45 billion cubic metres to 40.2 billion cubic metres citing low water inflows into Kariba Dam during the 2014/15 rainy season.
“This reduction in water allocation translates to reduction in average electricity production capacity on the Zambian side to 500MW from an average of around 800MW at the previous allocation,” she said.
Ms Banda said as at June 1, 2015, Zesco had 4,996 Giga Watt Hours [GWh] available for generation up to December 2015.
“But the current status is that we only have 1,158GWh available for generation from August to December 2015. This means that on average we should now only be generating up to 305MW from Kariba North Bank,” she said.
Ms Banda explained that power rationing that Zesco is implementing is meant to conserve water resources so that generation of electricity can continue through to the next rainy season.
“Regrettably, it has been noted that when power is restored to our customers after load shedding, the demand for power is very high as customers are trying to maximise the usage of electricity when it is available.
“This pattern of consumption is not helping the situation as the energy that Zesco needs to save is not being saved hence defeating the purpose of power rationing exercise,” Ms Banda said.
She warned that this consumption pattern will result in dire consequences if left unchecked.
“Water levels may fall much faster to the low threshold level and thus result in the premature shutting down of the Kariba North Bank station,” she said.
Meanwhile, the Zambia Daily Mail reports that Zesco has started engaging ordinary citizens to view the current status of  low water levels at the Kariba Dam and Kafue Gorge.
Zesco spokesperson Henry Kapata in an interview shortly after a familiarisation tour of  Kariba Dam and Kafue Gorge said that this is in an effort to sensitise people and to give them  first-hand information on the operations of the power utility company.
Mr Kapata said the invitation is all-inclusive irrespective of people’s political affiliations.
Zesco Kariba North Bank acting station manager Mahaku Maloza said the current load-shedding is the only option to effectively supply power within the generation levels to reach the next rainy season.
“The water level is much lower than expected this time of the year.  The rainfall was not as expected and hence we are controlling the way we are generating power by reducing the supply levels so that all customers are catered for,” he said.
Margaret Nyirenda, a resident of Kaunda Square, commended the power utility for its efforts to supply electricity to the nation under the current challenges.
“If I was not part of this tour, I would not have known what is really happening on the ground. Please let us not condemn or criticise the government but appreciate the efforts it is making for the benefit of the people,” she said.
ZAMBIA DAILY MAIL

PRESIDENT LUNGU APPOINTS NEW DISTRICT COMMISSIONERS

President Edgar Chagwa Lungu President of the Republic of Zambia has appointed new District Commissioners and transferred others in Luapula, Eastern, Muchinga and Northern provinces.
President Lungu has directed the appointees to apply themselves fully to public service by ensuring that they spearhead and coordinate developmental projects in their respective districts.
The President stressed that those who underperform will be removed from the public service forthwith.
The Head of State has directed the Secretary to the Cabinet to ensure that all District Commissioners are put on performance
based contracts with strict annual assessments.
“The immediate task for the new appointees and other serving District Commissioners is to coordinate the on-going crop marketing season and agro input distribution for the 2015/2016
farming season. All District Commissioners must get on the ground to monitor and supervise the massive infrastructure projects following the recent release of funds for roads, bridges, schools
and health facilities countrywide.”
The Head of State has taken this opportunity to warn all Civil Servants mis-conducting themselves by engaging in active politics that they will be removed from Government.
The President expects fast and efficient public service delivery hence all civil servants are required to abide by the stipulated Terms and Conditions of the Civil Service and carry out their duties
to support Government programmes as guided by the ruling party manifesto.

Zambia to Halt Issue of Mine Rights During Review of Rules

Zambia suspended the award, renewal and transfer of mining rights while the government scrutinizes the regulatory framework for new legislation, the latest in a series of abrupt changes for the industry.
Lawmakers in July approved the Mines and Minerals Development Act, which revised royalties to 6 percent for underground mines and 9 percent for open-cast operations. The law was enacted Aug. 14, according to the Chamber of Mines.
The royalty cuts were deeper than initially proposed for underground operators and replaced a tax system introduced in January, after miners warned they would have to cut costs by shutting plants and shedding jobs.
The “initial policy shock and U-turn have had an overall negative impact on business and investor confidence,” Fitch Ratings Ltd. said on Aug. 21.