Part Two: Moving From Problem Diagnosis to Prescribing Market Reforms Last week’s article argued that public opinion surrounding the Food Reserve Agency’s (FRA) delayed announcement of the maize buying price focused on the wrong policy question. While the timing and level of FRA’s procurement price matter for farmers’ income, they are symptoms of deeper structural […]

Part Two: Moving From Problem Diagnosis to Prescribing Market Reforms
Last week’s article argued that public opinion surrounding the Food Reserve Agency’s (FRA) delayed announcement of the maize buying price focused on the wrong policy question. While the timing and level of FRA’s procurement price matter for farmers’ income, they are symptoms of deeper structural weaknesses within Zambia’s maize marketing system. As long as policy discussions each marketing season remain centred on FRA’s maize buying price, insufficient attention will be given to the structural reforms needed to build efficient, competitive and resilient agricultural markets. This second article moves from diagnosis to prescription. The question is no longer whether FRA should announce a higher or lower buying price. Rather, it is how Zambia can build an agricultural system capable of supporting larger harvests while safeguarding food security, strengthening farmer incomes and maintaining fiscal sustainability.

Operationalising FRA’s Market Oriented Mandate

If Part One questioned whether FRA should continue functioning as Zambia’s de facto price setter, the logical policy response is to strengthen institutions capable of allowing prices to emerge through competitive markets. Importantly, this does not require redefining FRA’s role. The Food Reserve Act, 2026 already mandates the Agency to manage the National Strategic Food Reserve while minimising market distortions and to procure grain using pricing models informed by prevailing market conditions. The challenge is therefore not legislative reform, but implementation. Government should prioritise strengthening the Zambia Agricultural Commodities Exchange (ZAMACE) as the country’s principal platform for commercial grain trading. This should be supported by an operational Warehouse Receipt System, nationally recognised grain grading standards and transparent market information systems. Together, these reforms would improve price discovery, reduce uncertainty and allow FRA to procure grain in line with prevailing market prices while concentrating on its statutory food security mandate.

Rebalancing Agricultural Investment

The second reform concerns how Government allocates agricultural resources. Fiscal sustainability cannot be achieved simply by moderating FRA’s buying price if public expenditure continues to favour recurrent subsidies over productive investment. The 2025 fiscal expenditure pattern illustrates this imbalance. Approximately 75 per cent of agricultural spending was directed towards maize input support programmes. While these programmes have contributed to higher production, they have also constrained investment in irrigation, storage infrastructure, agricultural research and extension services. As Government prepares the 2027 National Budget, the priority should be to rebalance expenditure towards investments that permanently improve productivity, strengthen climate resilience and reduce future fiscal pressures.

Closing the Infrastructure Gap

The current marketing season has also exposed a disconnect between Zambia’s production ambitions and its supporting infrastructure. Government’s objective of increasing maize production towards 10 million metric tonnes will remain difficult to sustain if irrigation, storage and grain handling systems continue lagging behind output growth. Closing this gap requires more than increased public spending. Government should establish a de-risked Public-Private Partnership framework that mobilises private investment into irrigation schemes, grain storage and post-harvest infrastructure. Public investment should focus on strategic assets such as dams and bulk water infrastructure, while risk-sharing instruments, including partial credit guarantees, concessional finance and predictable regulatory frameworks—encourage private investors to finance and operate commercial infrastructure. This approach would expand agricultural infrastructure while preserving fiscal sustainability.

Diversification Must Become an Economic Strategy

Climate resilience also requires broadening Zambia’s agricultural production base. Continued dependence on maize exposes farmers and public finances to increasing climate and market risks. Government should therefore reposition diversification as an economic strategy by investing in commercially viable value chains for drought-tolerant crops such as cassava, sorghum, millet and groundnuts. This requires aligning research, extension services, agricultural finance and agro-processing investments around crops with growing domestic and regional demand. Diversification should complement maize production by reducing production risk, expanding market opportunities and strengthening rural incomes.

Moving the Conversation Forward

The current bumper harvest presents more than a marketing challenge; it presents a policy opportunity. If Zambia uses this moment to strengthen ZAMACE and FRA, modernise infrastructure and improve the composition of public investment, future harvests will become a source of sustained economic growth rather than recurring fiscal and logistical pressure. That is the conversation that should now shape Zambia’s agricultural policy.

About the Author.
Barnabas Mwale is an International Trade and Investment Specialist. He holds a degree in Economics and Finance from the University of Lusaka and is currently pursuing a master’s degree in International Trade and Policy at ZCAS University.