DAILY PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES FOR THE FIRST SESSION OF THE TENTH ASSEMBLY

Tuesday, 23rd January, 2007

The House met at 1430 hours

[MR SPEAKER in the Chair]

NATIONAL ASSEMBLY

PRAYER

_____

OATH AND AFFIRMATION OF ALLEGIANCE

The following Member took and subscribed the Oath:

Hastings L. Imasiku.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

HOW TO USE HIRED RECORDING EQUIPMENT IN THE CHAMBER

Mr Speaker: I have some announcements to make.

Hon. Members, I wish to inform you that the recording equipment control panel system here in the Chamber, which controls all the microphones for the Chamber, is faulty. As a result, and, in order to facilitate the sitting of the House, the National Assembly has hired recording equipment from Mulungushi International Conference Centre as a temporary measure while making arrangements to procure new equipment.

To ensure that the hired equipment serves us well, I would like to request hon. Members to observe the following rules:

(a) when you are called upon by the Chair to speak, press the button on the panel of the microphone in front of you, or the one nearest to you, and proceed to speak;

(b) at the end of your contribution, please, switch off the microphone by pressing the same button;

(c) when called upon to speak, do not tap the microphone. The microphones are very sensitive. Tapping them can damage the entire recording system. You activate the microphone by switching it on, and not by tapping it. When the red light is on, it means the microphone is activated;

(d) for hon. Members who are sitting in the front bench, your microphones are on the floor. Please, when called upon to speak, pick up one microphone nearest to you. Members of the front bench on my right may use the microphone on the Dispatch Box, if they so wish; and

(e) when walking around in the Chamber, please, avoid stepping on the cables linking the microphones because doing so may damage the system.

I hope these guidelines are clear enough to enable the House utilise the hired equipment effectively.

Thank you.

NEW MEMBERS OF THE HOUSE OF CHIEFS

Mr Speaker: I have another announcement to make.

Hon. Members, I wish to inform the House that we have, I believe, in the Public Gallery, new Members of the House of Chiefs who have come to listen to the parliamentary debates in order to acquaint themselves with parliamentary procedures and practices.

We warmly welcome them and we are happy to have them in our midst.

Thank you.

Hon. Members: Hear, hear!

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BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE

The Vice-President (Mr Rupiah Banda): Mr Speaker, I rise to give the House some idea of the business it will consider this week.

As indicated on the Order Paper, the business of the House today will be restricted to Questions for Oral Answer.

Tomorrow, Wednesday, 24th January, 2007, the business of the House will start with Questions, if there will be any. This will be followed by presentation of Government Bills, if there will be any. After that, the House will consider Private Members’ Motions, if there will be any.

On Thursday, 25th January, 2007, the business of the House will begin with Questions, if there will be any. This will be followed by presentation of Government Bills, if there will be any.

Sir, on Friday, 26th January, 2007, the business of the House will begin with the Vice-President’s Question Time. Then, the House will consider Questions, if there will be any. This will be followed by presentation of Government Bills, if there will be any. The House will then deal with any business that may not have been concluded the previous day.

Mr Speaker, I thank you.

Hon. Members: Hear, hear!

The Vice-President forgot to switch off the microphone.

Hon. Members: Switch off!

Laughter

The Vice-President switched off the microphone.

Laughter

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QUESTIONS

DONGWE FARMING BLOCK

34. Mr Imenda (Lukulu East) asked the Minister of Agriculture and Co-operatives when Dongwe Farming Block in Lukulu District would be fully operational.

The Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Co-operatives (Mr Mulonga): Mr Speaker, Dongwe Farming Block is now under the Department of Resettlement in the Office of the Vice-President. However, our officials are now going round conducting surveys for the farming block. Once the surveys are completed within this year, t the work will resume.

I thank you, Sir.

INADEQUATE AGRICULTURAL INPUTS

35. Mr Imenda asked the Minister of Agriculture and Co-operatives why Lukulu District received inadequate agricultural inputs all the time.

The Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Co-operatives (Mr Kalenga): Mr Speaker, the allocations of inputs to each district is based on among other factors, comparative advantage of an area in maize production, past fertiliser consumption and use, amount of carry over stock, number of farmers and above all, funds approved in the National Budget by Parliament.

Sir, due to inadequate resources, only limited quantities of inputs are procured under the Fertiliser Support Programme to cover the growing numbers of farmers throughout the country. The Government has been urging private suppliers to play a more active role in the delivery of inputs to various districts of the country.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Imenda: Mr Speaker, is the hon. Ministry of Agriculture and Co-operatives aware that the number of farmers in Lukulu East has been on the increase and that production has stalled due to the fact that the inputs are inadequate.

The Minister of Agriculture and Co-operatives (Mr Kapita): Mr Speaker, the ministry is aware and we are creating modalities to increase on reduce on the composition of the District Agriculture Committees. We are thinking of including Members of Parliament so that they provide leadership.

I thank you, Sir.

Mrs Musokotwane (Katombola): Mr Speaker, I would like to find out whether the problem of farmers complaining that the bags of fertiliser are under weights and do not weigh 50kgs because someone has removed the some of the fertiliser from the bags. Unfortunately, I am one of those farmers who are complaining. The fertiliser we received at my Chisamba farm weighed less than 50kgs per bag. They were under weights.

Mr Kapita: Mr Speaker, I am aware, after my tour of the four provinces, that we have a serious problem of underweight bags of fertiliser, some of them weighing in the range of 17 to 25kgs. However, I want to say that our own people at the ministry headquarters are not responsible for this. What is happening is that there is a lot of dishonesty among the drivers we hire, who are either individuals or coming from large companies.

For instance, Sir, I personally inspected 720bags meant for Masaiti which are marooned in Luanshya and the driver of that vehicle is appearing in court. I am also aware of the fact that in Mkushi at Kasokoso, I found 1,439 bags of fertiliser weighing between 17 and 25kgs. Again, the driver and my own officials are involved in this scandal. The same thing happened in Chililabombwe, Petauke and many other places.

Mr Speaker, I am happy to say that we have sent, as a ministry, auditors to Chililabobwe, Masaiti, Mpongwe, Kapiri-Mposhi, Petauke and in most of these places, I have had five people suspended because we have began to clean the system up.

I thank you, Sir.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear! Quality!

Dr Scott (Lusaka Central): Mr Speaker, the hon. Minister mentioned earlier that they were encouraging– I think the word used was the private sector- to get involved in input supply. I would like to find out whether he expects the private sector to compete with Government’s supply of the Fertiliser Support Programme at two and half times the price because it is subsidised or the ministry is making arrangements to subsidise the private sector to make it competitive.

Mr Kapita: Mr Speaker, the Government is aware of the need to develop private sector capacity to supply and deliver fertiliser to all regions. In fact, on all my trips to the provinces, one of the key issues I speak about is the need to develop private sector capacity. Currently, this country requires more than 180,030 of fertiliser a year. The Agricultural Support Programme (ASP) is only supplying 80,000 metric tonnes. There is another 100,000 metric tonnes that the province is supposed to supply, but they are not doing so. In any case, we expect the private sector to supply fertiliser throughout the year and not wait for the time the Government is supplying for them to come into the market. Otherwise, we are involved in building private sector capacity and mainly, through the co-operative system which operates at village level.

I thank you, Sir.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Chimbaka indicated by raising his hand and stood up.

Mr Chimbaka: Mr Speaker, I thank you, …

Mr Speaker: Order! Order! The hon. Member for Roan.

Mr Kambwili (Roan): Mr Speaker, I would like to find out whether the hon. Minister of Agriculture and Co-operatives is aware that there is fraud going on in fertiliser co-operatives. In my constituency, I am told that most of the people in the co-operatives cannot afford to pay the K406,000 requirement. The District Co-operative Officers are now collecting fertiliser and selling it at exorbitant prices.

Mr Kapita: Mr Speaker, I would like to say that we are aware and the situation is under control. Having gone round, I have seen that we have a problem in Chililabombwe where 2,000 bags of fertiliser are missing. An audit was conducted and the District Agriculture Co-ordinator has been prosecuted. We also have a problem in Masaiti where two farmers and an official were prosecuted.

In Kabwe and Kapiri Mposhi, the District Agriculture-Co-Ordinator is on suspension because he defrauded more than K10 million worth of fertiliser. In Luangwa, I found a truckload of fertiliser at Petauke from Luangwa being sold and the officials in Luangwa have been prosecuted. In Petauke, at the time I was leaving, the District Agriculture Co-ordinator, the Acting District Co-Operative Officer and a young lady manning the fertiliser were suspended and prosecuted. We intend to prosecute everyone that is involved.

Thank you, Sir.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Chimbaka (Bahati): Mr Speaker, it is good that the hon. Minister has admitted that there has been a lot of theft and dubiousness in the distribution of fertiliser. Is he aware that sometimes the people they contract to deliver fertiliser to different places advertently choose to take urea at the beginning of the farming season and ‘D’ Compound in January? If he is aware, what is the ministry doing about this? Does the ministry have any plans to compensate people who spent a lot of money on ploughing and so on?

Mr Kapita: Mr Speaker, it is saddening for fertiliser to be getting to farm areas late. It is not the intention of this Government to deliver inputs late. In the last season, we sent fertiliser in districts by August of last year. What we have had are local problems and I have always said that I would like hon. Members of Parliament and councillors in rural areas to come us by ensuring that they identify people who are defrauding the system. We are prepared to work with them so that we improve the situation. Our desire is to get fertiliser in those areas by about July and August so that come rainy season, everything is in place.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Muntanga (Kalomo): Mr Speaker, is the ministry considering disbanding and overhauling the whole system since it has shown deceit in the marketing of fertiliser?

Mr Kapita: Mr Speaker, we have no intention of disbanding or restructuring the ministry because there is nothing wrong with it. There are a few bad eggs here and there, and unfortunately, the majority of people who are defrauding the Government are farmers themselves. These are small, medium and large. In fact, I cry when I see commercial farmers buying fertiliser on the black market from small-scale farmers. They entice the small-scale farmers to sell their fertiliser. Therefore, it is not my ministry which is deceitful, but by and large, the people out there, including commercial farmers.

I thank you, Sir.

Hon. Government Farmers: Hear, hear!

Mr Mwansa (Chifunabuli): Mr Speaker, what is the hon. Minister doing about members of the co-operatives who paid for the purchase of fertiliser, but that fertiliser has not been delivered to them?

Mr Kapita: Mr Speaker, I would like to apologise for the inputs that have not been delivered. However, let me say that it is not the intention of the Government to provide fertiliser to every farmer because there are 1.3 million small-scale farmers in this country and we are only providing fertiliser to 180,000 small-scale farmers. Therefore, in some places, many farmers paid for fertilizer even when they knew that the allocation for their district would not be sufficient. So, the people who paid for fertiliser, but did not get it will be reimbursed what they paid.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Mwangala (Nalolo): Mr Speaker, is the hon. Minister aware that the Western Province has two agricultural seasons, that is, early planting and normal? Is he aware that no seed has ever been supplied for the early planting season? Does the Government have plans to set up co-operatives for early planting which is supposed to be done in May?

Mr Kapita: Mr Speaker, I am very grateful for that question. The Government intends to supply fertiliser to all farmers who qualify or who are vulnerable, but viable wherever they are. Therefore, our programme is meant to supply fertiliser to all the people who qualify wherever they are in Zambia because if they qualify, they deserve to be given some fertiliser.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Njobvu (Milanzi): Mr Speaker, I would like to say that I am disturbed by the remarks made by the hon. Minister of Agriculture and Co-operatives alleging that small-scale farmers are partly to blame for fraud in the agricultural system. I know I have been in …

Mr Speaker: Order! You may ask your question, please.

Will he continue, please.

Mr Njobvu: Mr Speaker, the welfare ministry has been collecting money from farmers in Nakonde and Katete districts. Is the ministry aware of this? If it is, what is it doing to ensure that the money is returned to the owners?

Mr Kapita: Mr Speaker, I would like to say that we are aware as the welfare ministry. I was in Nakonde and our own officials informed me about this problem. I was also in Chipata and the Provincial Agriculture Co-ordinator also informed me about the same problem.

However, I am happy to inform this august House the police has since arrested three people. The people who have been collecting money have no relationship with the Ministry of Agriculture and Co-operatives. These are conmen and women who have been defrauding farmers in Nakonde, Isoka, Chinsali, Chipata and Lundazi.

With regard to small-scale farmers defrauding the fertiliser system, I would like to confirm that one of my biggest disappointments is that some of the small-scale farmers who are the target group for the Fertiliser Support Programme get fertiliser and resell it. They sell half of the pack and apply the other half to one hectare. As a result, we only get 30 bags of maize from a hectare instead of 120 bags per hectare.

I would like to confirm that small-scale, medium and commercial farmers are involved in flooding the system.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Kanyanyamina (Kanchibiya): Mr Speaker, I would like to find out from the hon. Minister of Agriculture and Co-operatives whether he is aware that what he did when he came to Mpika District during his routine tours caused more harm in terms of unity and reconciliation, considering the message the Vice-President gave us that we should go and supervise and if possible, ensure full participation in farming. He did not inform any of the Members of Parliament in Mpika about his visit in the area. We just met him in Mpika. Is it because we are in the Opposition? He is aware of the importance of reconciliation and that what he is talking about can seriously affect the development of agriculture?

Mr Kapita: Mr Speaker, I would like to apologise to the hon. Member of Kanchibiya …

Mr Kanyanyamina clapped his hands.

Mr Speaker: Order!

Mr Kapita: Mr Speaker, I would like to say that hon. Members of Parliament are being praised for what is happening in their own constituencies.

When I went to Nyimba I had a meeting for three hours with the area Member of Parliament. I also went to Chadiza and the hon. Member of Parliament for Chadiza and all other Members of Parliament from Eastern Province were there. It was the same in the Central and Copperbelt Provinces.

In the Northern Province, it is not my fault that the hon. Member of Parliament did not attend our meetings. I wanted every Member of Parliament to share with me his or her experiences because we are ruling the people of this country together. We are ready to work with Members of Parliament who come forward, but we cannot force those who choose to stay away to come.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Speaker: I want to remind the House that no applauding is allowed in this House.

Laughter

Mr Speaker: You may say hear, hear in approval.

Mr Hamir (Chitambo): Mr Speaker, I would like to find out if Chitambo Constituency is receiving any fertiliser and whether there are any plans for the depots to be built this year?

Mr Kapita: Mr Speaker, the answer is, no. Last season, we distributed fertiliser on two occasions. By 18th of November, 2006, we had delivered 60,000 metric tonnes of fertiliser. When I asked the Republican President for additional help, he gave us 20,000 metric tonnes and we asked every district to indicate what the shortfall was and when they did, we did not even leave out any party. We gave them as they indicated during the second round.

As for Serenje, when I toured the district, they pleaded for more fertiliser and we sent a third round of fifty metric tonnes. So, they are not going to get a fourth round.

Mr Speaker, depots are very important. I have been going Chitambo and among the issues that I have been discussing with farmers was the question of location of depots. I told them that I did not want a repeat of the complaints of the last season. As to where the depots would be located, I have said that we want to see hon. Members of Parliament in those areas, the councillors the District Commissioners and all involved in deciding where these depots would be located. When this has been done, they will report to the Provincial Agricultural Co-ordinators and there are nine of them. These will then report to the Permanent Secretary who will in turn sit with the Board of Food Reserve Agency to agree on where to build the depots. The final proposal will come to my office. Every district is going to build depots as they decide. However, if you ask for too many depots, of course, we will not agree, but if you ask for a small number of depots, you are definitely going to get them.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Ndalamei (Sikongo): Mr Speaker, throughout the country farmers are complaining of receiving inadequate fertiliser, what measures has the ministry taken to improve the production of fertiliser?

Mr Kapita: Mr Speaker, I receive telephone calls twenty-four hours a day. As I said earlier, it is not possible for this Government to supply fertiliser to all the 1.3 million small-scale farmers. If we do this, the allocation to be approved by this august House for fertiliser will not be enough to supply fertiliser to everybody. However, we are not going to increase the allocation over and above what the country cannot afford.

In any case, we have said that we must encourage and facilitate development of the private sector. I have been encouraging the private sector to come in so that the Government can only deal with needy cases of the vulnerable, but viable.

I thank you, Sir.{mospagebreak}

WORKS ON SAFWA ROAD

36. Major Chibamba (Shiwang’andu) asked the Minister of Works and Supply:

(a) when the bridge construction works on the Safwa Road over the Chambeshi River would commence; and
(b) when road rehabilitation works on the Safwa Road from M3 to D18 would commence.

The Deputy Minister of Works and Supply (Mr Tetamashimba): Mr Speaker, the following is the answer, the construction of Safwa Bridge will be carried out in ten years, that is up to 2010 in which time, it is presumed traffic will have grown to economic levels. To this end, the consultant was engaged to carry out a feasibility study leading to a preliminary engineering design for the construction of a permanent bridge at Safwa.

According to the 1997 Preliminary Engineering Design Report, the cost of construction of a permanent bridge was estimated at US$12.3 million. However, the study was discontinued in 1998 due to inadequate funding. Since then, there has not been any budget allocation.

On maintenance of Safwa Road, the ministry has immediate intentions to improve the existing condition of the road. In the 2006 Budget, there was a provision of K650 million for the maintenance of Safwa Road which was released by the Treasury.

Nevertheless, my ministry has made a provision of K1.8 billion in the 2008 Annual Work Plan for the maintenance of Safwa Road.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Kambwili: Mr Speaker, I was wondering whether I got the hon. Minister correctly when he said, ‘until the road is economically viable’. I have never seen any toll gates on our roads. Therefore, what does he mean when he says that the road will only be worked on when it is economically viable? Further, why should the construction of the bridge take five years up to 2010? Surely, are we serious with what we are doing as a Government to construct one bridge in almost six years?

The Minister of Works and Supply (Mr Simbao): Mr Speaker, with regard to the issue of toll gates, the Bill will be coming to Parliament which will specify how we start these projects. Then everyone will decide where they want to put toll gates. As to how we do roads and bridges, feasibility studies are carried out and these are prioritised. Once this is done, the road that proves very economical is given priority. In this particular case, the traffic has been checked on this road and bridge, it is not yet above some of the other routes that we are trying to do.

Therefore the pontoon that is there at the moment is sufficient. However, we should appreciate the need and the feasibility study was conducted on this road and it was realised that we needed about US2.3 million, but we could not raise this money for this bridge.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Munaile (Malole): Mr Speaker, is the hon. Minister aware that between 30th January  and 30th April  of each year, the pontoon on the Chambeshi River, that is Safwa and Mbesuma, is closed to traffic and people have to use alternative routes.

Mr Simbao: Mr Speaker, I am aware that right now the pontoon is closed. The river has swelled to levels where it is not safe to use the pontoon. The pontoon is operational, but it will be risking the lives of the people to use it. So, the people have to use alternative routes. However, that does not mean that this particular point becomes more important than Chirundu where we raise a lot of money. No. We have other areas where we need to put up bridges because we raise a lot of money from them. Therefore, we need to find money for those areas first before we come to the other areas.

I thank you, Sir.

MATUMBO/CHAMA ROAD

37. Major Chibamba: asked the Minister of Works and Supply:

(a) when the road reconstruction works on the dilapidated Matumbo-Chama  road would commence; and

(b) when the bridge construction works on the Matumbo-Chama road over the  Luangwa River would commence.

Hon. Tetamashimba: Mr Speaker, I wish to respond that my ministry intends to rehabilitate the almost non-existing road between Chama and Matumbo Road when the proposed Matumbo Bridge is constructed. The Ministry is not able to carryout two major projects in the same area at the same time.

With regard to the construction of the Matumbo Bridge, the amount of K700 million was allocated in the 2006 Budget which was meant for the feasibility study to determine the most appropriate type of bridge to be constructed across the Luangwa River at Matumbo, but it was not released. However, the ministry intends, this year, to use the design and build method in order to accelerate the construction of the bridge. The ministry has recommended using the Bailey bridge components taken to Chama from Kalamabwe to be used in the design. In this regard, the ministry has included a sufficient amount of K1 billion in the 2007 Work Plan for the construction of Matumbo Bridge.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Mwangala: Mr Speaker, I would like to find out from the hon. Minister of Works and Supply when the Limulunga/Mongu/Senanga Road operations will resume?

Mr Speaker: The hon. Member for Nalolo is guided that question number 37 refers to Matumbo/Chama road only.

Laughter

Mr Speaker: However, he will is free to submit a question on that subject which affects his area.

Laughter

Mr Mooya (Moomba): Mr Speaker, the hon. Minister spoke about the Bailey bridge and I assume it is the one that was at Kalamabwe Bridge. Is he aware that the Bailey bridge is only meant to be built on a twenty metre long bridge and not hundred metres which is required at Matumbo Bridge?

Mr Tetamashimba: Hon. Minister, thank you very much for that question …

Laughter

Mr Tetamashimba: The hon. Member for Moomba was a director in the ministry …

Interruptions

Mr Tetamashimba: … yes, we are aware Hon. Mooya.

CONSTRUCTION OF BASIC AND HIGH SCHOOLS

37. Mr Lubinda (Kabwata) asked the Minister of Education:

(a) how many Basic and High Schools were constructed country-wide from 2001 to 2006; and

(b) how many school places are now available at Basic, Middle Basic and High School levels.

The Deputy Minister of Education (Ms Changwe): Mr Speaker, I would like to respond that the Ministry of Education has been constructing additional infrastructure at existing schools countrywide.

For instance, the Ministry constructed the following additional structures from 2001 to 2006. The Ministry of Education captured the number of schools built by way of number of classrooms built because most of these classrooms have been built at various schools to replace temporary structures.

(a) Basic Schools

Year  Number of Classrooms
2001  683
2002  1,123
2003  932
2004  601
2005  716
Total  4,055

With regard to 2006, funds have been disbursed and the ministry is in the process of finding out how many have since been constructed.

However, only in a few cases has the Ministry built new schools, such as the eighteen basic schools in Lusaka under Japanese support.

(b) High Schools

(i) Two high schools have been constructed since 2001 to date. These are Kafumbwe and Lubezi High Schools in Katete and Lundazi districts of Eastern Province. The construction of these schools was abandoned in 1987 when the World Bank which was funding the project pulled out.

(ii) the other high school is the Ndola Girls Technical High School which is under construction.

(iii) In addition, the following schools have been advertised for construction:- Kafushi in Chibombo, Mufumbwe, Chitambo in Serenje, Itezhi-tezhi, Sioma in Shangombo and Muyombe in Isoka.

Hon. Members: Hear, hear!

The Number of school places available at basic and high school level as at now are as follows:
School Level   No. of Schools Constructed
(a) Lower Basic (Grade 1-4)    1,704,820
(b) Middle Basic (Grade 5-7)    967,148
(c) Upper Basic (Grade 8-9)    304,013
(d) High School (Grades 10 –12)   193,419.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Lubinda: Mr Speaker, given that there are only two high schools that were built between 2001 and 2006, could I find out from the hon. Minister of Education how the next enrolment ratio in high schools has increased from 1995 from 26 per cent by 10 per cent per year. Has it been as a result of increasing the number of children per classroom? If so, is that not one of the reasons performance of children at high school has been diminishing in terms of quality?

Ms Changwe: Mr Speaker, at the moment, the Government has provided an enabling environment for other partners to help in the delivering or supplying of educational services. As such, we have private schools and that is how come the enrolment ratio has risen.

I thank you, Mr Speaker.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Sikota (Livingstone): Mr Speaker, the hon. Minister was quite clear that there were inadequate school places being created for the rising number of pupils. Therefore, what plans does the Government have to ensure that there is the scaling up of provision of school places at all levels? What criteria is the ministry using to decide where it will build or upgrade new schools?

Ms Changwe: Mr Speaker, at the moment, the policy direction in my ministry is that the Government has moved from rehabilitation of schools to construction of schools. As such, in this year’s plan, we are going to construct schools. This will be done by looking at priority areas. Once a survey has been conducted, we are going to decide which areas to build schools in. For instance, in new districts such as Shang’ombo, we are going to build new schools there.

I thank you, Mr Speaker.

Mr Mubika: Quality!

Mr Mwiimbu (Monze): Mr Speaker, I would like to find out whether the hon. Minister is aware that the facilities obtaining at basic schools are so basic that the institutions cannot provide quality education in those schools. Therefore, what measures is the Government going to put in place to improve basic facilities?

Ms Changwe: Mr Speaker, we, as a ministry, are aware that we are actually charged with the responsibility of ensuring the delivery of high quality education. As such, we have embarked on various programmes such upgrading the teachers in those schools by way of in-service training. We have also gone into rehabilitation of structures that were not of the expected standards.

I thank you, Mr Speaker.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

SKILLS TRAINING CENTRES OPERATED BY THE GOVERNMENT LOCAL COUNCILS AND CHURCHES

39. Mr Lubinda asked the Minister of Science, Technology and Vocational Training how many skills training centres were operated by the Government, local councils and churches in the country.

The Minister of Science, Technology and Vocational Training (Dr Chituwo): Mr Speaker, according to the list of training institutions and centres registered by the Technical, Vocational and Entrepreneurship Training Authority (TEVETA), there are 319 institutions operated in the country and are run by various groups as follows:

Ownership  No. of Institutions

Government    51

Churches    59

Community/NGOs   9

Private-for-profit   177

Trust     11

In-Company    12

All these are registered and operate according to the provisions of the TEVETA Act No. 13, of 1998.

According to the register, there are no centres being run by local councils, and if there are, these could have been categorised under Government or community run centres.

Mr Speaker, even though the figures given above show that there are more institutions run by the private sector, the House may be interested to know that Government institutions train more people compared to other groups. According to the 2005 statistics, a total of 23,931 trainees were enrolled in the skills training institutions as follows:

Ownership   Full-time Part-time Total    Female

Government   9,832  867  10,699    3,868

NGO/Church/Community 2,801  282  3,083     1,542

Private/In-Company  5,514  1,316  6,830     3,428

Trust    3,009  310  3,319  1,630

Further, Mr Speaker, most Government programmes are long-term, ranging from two to three years, while the other groups offer short-term courses, mostly for one to six months. It is also mostly Government institutions that provide the technical and craft programmes at subsidised fees, while the others offer mostly secretarial and business courses that are cheaper to run.

I thank you, Mr Speaker.

Mr Lubinda: Mr Speaker, one of the basic objectives of TEVETA was to follow up on graduates from skills training centres. Could the hon. Minister share with us whether the Trace up Programme at TEVETA is in place and what the findings have been over the last two years, particularly, with regard to the quality of training that is being provided by the institutions that he referred to.

Dr Chituwo: Mr Speaker, the Trace up Programme is in place. We have conducted a study which we are yet to review in order to see where our students are. When that report has been reviewed, we shall share the results with the hon. Member of Parliament for Kabwata.

Mr Speaker, with regard to the issue of quality of education, skills training has been an on-going process. TEVETA has classified institutions into class one, two or three. This is for purposes not only of skills training standards in terms of out comes, but also the ability to access funds for further improvement in these institutions.

I thank you, Mr Speaker.

Mr Mukanga (Kantanshi): I would like to find from the hon. Minister how the ministry ensures that there is quality in the private institutions.

Dr Chituwo: Mr Speaker, one of the laws under the TEVETA Act is to monitor, regulate and evaluate these programmes.

TEVETA regularly visits the institutions. This is why after inspections, they are able to classify trades training institutions and this may not only be public institutions, the private sector is also involved. This is an attempt to ensure that the standards are the same in both public institutions and the private sector.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Sikota: I would like to find out from the hon. Minister when exactly we shall get the results from these programmes because the courses started five years ago. Why has it taken so long before any results can be made available to the stakeholders and the nation?

Dr Chituwo: Mr Speaker, we shall give him the results as I answered earlier. There is review of the system going on. So, he can just wait for a little while. These answers will be there.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Sikazwe (Chimbamilonga): Mr Speaker, I would like to find out from the hon. Minister what powers and roles TEVETA has to protect the established colleges from collapse once taken over by private ownership. This has happened at Kitwe Trades Schools where KCM Management has withdrawn and the college has been left without any machinery.

Dr Chituwo: Mr Speaker, I do not think the hon. Member of Parliament is telling the truth. I visited Kitwe Trades School and the equipment is still intact and the training programmes are going on.

With regard to what are we doing, to be honest, these are private institutions and so, if the owner of the institutions want to relocate, what we can do as a Government is to negotiate with them as the need arises. Otherwise, they are free to do whatever they want to with these institutions.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Milupi (Luena): Mr Speaker, is the hon. Minister aware that the quality of graduates coming out of TAVETA is not very high. The reason for this is that during the training period, they have very little practical work. What is the ministry doing to ensure that there have total co-operation from industries and ensure that as the trainees go through the TEVETA Programme, they have the right amount of time on the job training in factories and industries.

Dr Chituwo: Mr Speaker, the issue of quality of training is of concern to the Ministry of Science and Technology and Vocational Training. This is why under the Act of Parliament, TEVETA makes regular visits and inspections of these institutions. If these institutions do not meet the set standard, they are deregistered.

Mr Speaker, with regard to apprenticeship, the hon. Member of Parliament for Luena might be aware that whereas our ministry is mandated to provide skills training, the Apprenticeship Act entails that the Ministry of Labour and Social Security overseas this. This is one of the issues that we have to bring to this House so that Apprenticeship Act is operationalised in the Ministry of Science, Technology and Vocation Training. We are the trainers and therefore, we are better placed to link our student with industries.

In addition, we have been in contact with industries. In fact, last October, we had a big meeting that to which various stakeholders were invited to map up the skills that might be needed in the next five to ten years. Therefore, this is the interaction that my ministry has with industries.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr K. B. Banda (Chasefu): Mr Speaker, admittedly the quality of education or skills training provided by the skills training centres are below standard. could the hon. Minister tell the House how many private skills training centres have been deregistered as a result of their failure to meet the prescribed quality standards?

Dr Chituwo: Mr Speaker, that is a new question that needs research.

I thank you, Sir.

Laughter{mospagebreak}

ZAMSIF PROJECTS IN NALOLO PARLIAMENTARY CONSTITUENCY

41. Mr Mwangala asked the Minister of Finance and National Planning:

(a) how many projects were completed under ZAMSIF in the Nalolo Parliamentary constituency from 2002 to 2005, year by year;

(b) how many projects were not completed in the same period and what the reasons for the non-completion of the projects were; and

(c) what measures the ministry had taken to complete the projects.

The Deputy Minister of Finance and National Planning (Mr Shakafuswa): I would to thank the hon. Member for Nalolo.

Mr Speaker, I would like to inform the House that under the ZAMSIF Programme, Senanga District was allocated approximately US$ 510, K2.4 billion under the Indicative Planning Figure (IPF) for the period 2002 to 2005. The IPF gave the district an incentive for planning and encouraged accountability between the district administration and the communities.

It is worth noting that it was the district which considered all project proposals for various communities and approved them for funding by ZAMSIF taking into account the eligibility criteria or rejected them.

In this regard, a total of seven projects were funded and five projected were completed in Nalolo Constituency as shown in the table below.

Project Name   Year of funding Value (K)  Completion  
Kataba Rural Health Centre  1997   180,803,177  2002

Mooyo Basic School   1997   115,088,262  2002
 
Lilyachi Rural Health Centre  1999   163,396,501  2001

Nanjucha Rural Health Centre 2000   249,858,220  2003

Nasilimwe Primary Schools  2000   140,306,258  2003

Total        849,452,418

Mr Speaker, two projects namely; Mooyo Police Post and Nambwae Primary School were not completed as shown in the table below:

Project Name Donor Year of Funding Value K Status

Mooyo Police Post  ZAMSIF 2003  K519,154,949  incomplete 
Nambwae Primary School  ZAMSIF 2003   K363,200,916 incomplete 
Total   K882,355,865

Sir, with regard to Mooyo Police Post, the project was not completed as the borehole was not drilled due to the non availability of drillers in the Western Province in general. Most drillers were reluctant to work in the province because it was difficult to access the various sites and the hydro geological conditions for drilling in the province were not conducive. The borehole has since been drilled and we are working towards installing the pumps so that the project is completed.

As for Nambwae Primary School, the project could not be completed as planned because some cement which was entrusted with the community went missing during transportation. The matter was reported to the police, the culprit was identified and he agreed to replace the cement. The community was to follow up the issue of recovering the cement and complete the project. Since you are the representative of the people as Member of Parliament, I would urge you to follow up this issue so that the project can be completed.

With regard to the completion of the water project for the police post, the initial funding of K509,154,949 was found to be inadequate after tendering. This amount could not cater for policemen and others. However, we are encouraging the community, through your participation hon. Member of Parliament, to approach the Ministry of Home Affairs, which is the line ministry, to help in sourcing the funds. The Ministry of Home Affairs can give you money to complete this project under their funding for projects.

Hon. Government Member: Give the Member of Parliament the money!

Mr Mwangala: Thank you very much.

Mr Shakafuswa: As for the water project, you will appreciate the fact that we made an effort and supplied the following:

(a) 6no. Grundfos GF55 panels, 30V with support structure;

(b) 1no. SQ Flex 2.5-2N solar pump c/w motor with connector wire kit, accessories, cables and poly pipes;

(c) 10,000 litres poly tank; and

(d) Steel for the 6.0m elevated tank stand.

Suffice to say, Mr Speaker, that all necessary equipment, including the borehole is there. What is left to be done is fit the pipes for the post police to have water.

With regard to the school, as I have said, it is just a matter of the Member of Parliament making a follow up with the community. I would not encourage a situation where someone steals and agrees to replace the items he or she stole. Let us prosecute them so that these people have respect for public property.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Lubinda: Mr Speaker, when the minister was referring to the police post, he said that he would like to encourage the Member of Parliament to make a  follow up with the line ministry namely; Ministry of Home Affairs so that the ministry can raise the money for the project. I wonder if the minister could advise us where the Ministry of Home Affairs can get money from besides the Ministry of Finance and National Planning. Being Deputy Minister of Finance and National Planning, would he not say to us whether his ministry has considered allocating money to the Ministry of Home Affairs for Nalolo to finish constructing their police post?

Mr Shakafuswa: Mr Speaker, I expect Given …

Mr Speaker: Order!

Laughter

Mr Shakafuswa: Mr Speaker, I said it clearly that the Ministry of Home Affairs has a fund under projects which the Member of Parliament and the community can access which is definitely funded by the Ministry of Finance and National Planning.

I thank you, Sir.

NON OPERATIONAL LOCAL COURTS

42. Mr Mwangala asked the Minister of Justice how many local courts were not operating due to inadequate staff in the Nalolo Parliamentary Constituency from 2004 to 2005.

The Deputy Minister of Justice (Mr Machila): Mr Speaker, there are a total of six local courts in Nalolo Parliamentary Constituency and these are as follows:

(a) Nanjucha;
(b) Nasilimwe;
(c) Sinungu;
(d) Shekela;
(e) Nalolo; and
(f) Mukukutu.

The above courts have all been operational in 2004 and 2005. However, the following courts in the said constituency have not been operational for the reasons stated hereunder.

The operations at Shekela Local Court Grade ‘B’ stopped on 1st October, 2006 following the death of the acting presiding justice. The court is supposed to be serviced by a presiding justice sitting with one local court justice. While the deceased was acting as presiding justice, it was not possible to appoint a local court justice to replace her until she was confirmed, but she, unfortunately, died before confirmation.

At the moment, the Provincial Local Courts Officer in Mongu has been detailed to urgently transfer a serving local court justice to Shekela so that operations will resume while the process of replacing the deceased is underway.

Operations at Sinungu-Lilyachi Local Court Grade ‘B’ stopped when the local court justice was retired by the Judicial Service Commission with effect from 31st July, 2006. The process of replacing the retired court justice has already commenced.

Nalolo Local Court Grade ‘B’ has not been operational since September, 2006 following the promotion and subsequent transfer of the senior presiding justice to Nakato Local Court. The Provincial Local Courts Officer in Mongu has been instructed to quickly identify a serving and deserving local court justice for promotion to the post of presiding justice who will be posted to Nalolo.

I thank you, Sir.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Mwangala: Mr Speaker, I would like to find out from the hon. Minister whether Kaungabeti Local Court that has not been operational for more than six years is now operational.

Secondly, is the hon. Minister aware that justice delayed is justice denied?

The Minister of Justice (Mr Kunda): Mr Speaker, we are aware of the principle that he has referred to that justice delayed is justice denied, but what we are doing in terms of justice delivery and in replacing court staff, has been adequately explained in the answer.

Mr Speaker, the other question is new and there is no answer to it at this moment.

Laughter

CURRENT FIGURES OF EMPLOYMENT AND UNEMPLOYMENT

43. Mr Kasongo (Bangweulu) asked the Minister of Labour and Social Security:

(a) what the current figures for employment and unemployment in Zambia were; and

(b) what measures the Ministry had taken to expand the formal sector with a view to absorbing the ever increasing number of unemployed people in Zambia.

The Deputy Minister of Labour and Social Security (Mr Liato): Mr Speaker, according to the 2005 Labour Force Survey by the Central Statistics Office in conjunction with our Ministry, the total labour force in our country is estimated at 4,918,000. Out of this figure, 16 per cent, which translates to about 787,000 falls in the unemployment category.

The total number of the employed persons currently stands at 4,131,000 thousand of which 12 per cent are employed in the formal sector and 88 per cent in the informal sector.

Employment does not mean formal only and that is the clarification I wish to make. So, we are talking about a figure of 4,131,000, meaning formal and informal, but they are all employed.

Mr Speaker, on (b), a National Employment and Labour Market Policy was formulated and launched by His Honour the Vice President last year in November, with the overall objective of creating adequate and quality jobs under conditions that ensure adequate income and protection of workers basic rights, as well as enhancement of occupational health and safety procedures at places of work.

Mr Speaker, the National Employment and Labour Market Policy Implementation Plan has been developed to operationalise the policy. The National Employment and Labour Market Policy will be implemented in conformity with other policies dealing with private sector development as the Government expects the private sector to serve as the engine for economic growth.

Thank you, Sir.

Dr Machungwa (Luapula): Mr Speaker, the hon. Deputy Minister has stated that the labour force in the country is 4,000,000, If I got him correctly, he also stated that employment figure in the country is 4,000,000, when you add up the employment and unemployment figures. Is he, therefore, saying that there is full employment in Zambia with that response.

The Minister of Labour and Social Security (Mr Mukuma): Mr Speaker, according to the survey, the figures we are quoting are actually from the survey that was conducted in 2005 by the Central Statistical Office together with my Ministry.

Now the figure of 4,000,000 that we are talking about includes the informal sector. We have in the formal sector a figure to the tune of 490,000, the remainder are in the informal sector. By informal sector, we mean the people who are self employed, people who have their own businesses, those working in their fathers’ shops, and the people who are running tuntemba. This is the informal sector we are talking about.

I thank you, Sir.

Hon. Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Ngoma (Sinda): Mr Speaker, the 8 per cent that the hon. Minister is talking about translates to four hundred and twenty one thousand, three hundred and sixty two people working in the formal sector, meaning we have millions of people in the informal sector. I would like to find out from him what is it that the Government is doing to see to it that everyone in this country does not end up running a kantemba, but that we should have more people being employed in the formal sector.

Mr Mukuma: Mr Speaker, the Government, at the moment, has job creation as one of its priority strategies. The Government has put in place measures that have already been indicated, one of it is the formulation of a National Employment Policy. This policy seeks to encourage and create more jobs and as the House is already aware, the Government is actually looking forward to the private sector being the engine of job creation to absorb the excess or the idle labour from the private sector.

The Government is putting in place measures that can encourage the private sector to respond to the Government’s call for people to engage themselves in a lot of projects and income-generating programmes. So what the Government is doing and my Ministry in particular is to encourage private participation of citizens in various programmes. We will come up with ideas, suggestions and programmes that we hope the private sector will respond to positively for them to engage in income-generating projects. Mr Speaker, the Government has taken this seriously and we hope that there will be  some response from the private sector. In fact, Mr Speaker, I wish to take this opportunity …

Mr Kambwili interjected.

Mr Mukuma: … to say to my colleague, Mathew, the Members of Parliament here that the task of creating jobs is enormous and that it cannot be left to the Government alone.

Hon. Opposition Members: Aah!

Mr Mukuma: There is a tendency among us leaders to only look forward to the Government to create jobs …

Hon. Opposition Members: Yes.

Mr Mukuma: … and we limit our leadership only to programmes that the Government is doing. I think we must also provide leadership that can motivate our own people in the constituencies. We have many people with a lot of potential in the constituencies, but they lack the leadership which we as Members of Parliament are supposed to provide, while the Government is doing everything possible. As Members of Parliament we are also supposed to provide leadership to make sure that the people in our constituencies are actually engaged in productive ventures.

Mr Speaker, I was encouraged …

Hon. Opposition Members: Aah!

Mr Mukuma: … that in one of the constituencies people have been motivated by their Member of Parliament and they are utilising the road to Namibia to export goods. I wish other Members of Parliament would take such leadership. Then, together we would fight together to create the much needed jobs.

I thank you, Sir.

Hon. Members: Hear, hear!{mospagebreak}

NUMBER OF ZAMBIANS WORKING IN INTERNATIONAL ORGANISATIONS

44. Mr Kasongo asked the Minister of Foreign Affairs:

(a) how many Zambians were currently working in international organisations and what their names and posts were; and

(b) what measures had been taken to increase the number of Zambians working in international organisations.

The Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs (Mr Mulongoti): Mr Speaker, currently, we have a total of 476 Zambians working in international organisations. I will later lay on the table of this House, a detailed list containing their names and positions.

Mr Speaker, I further wish to inform this august House that these names include those employed by international organisations both in Zambia and abroad.

Mr Speaker, as regards to part (b), I wish to state that the Government has taken measures to increase the number of Zambians working in international organisations. These measures take various forms, including the following:

(a) Firstly, the Government sees to it that the best is done to ensure that vacancies advertised in international organisations are as widely publicised as possible in order to attract as many applications as possible.

(b) the Government plays the vital role of authenticating the bonafide status of the individuals applying for jobs. The Government also assures the organisations that the individuals in question are well suited for the position, and therefore, has no objection to their application.

I must emphasise that applicants are more often than not oblivious of this important Government function. In fact, without this authentication, the international organisation would not be in a position to successfully consider the applications.

(a) the Government is cognisant of the fact that as a country, we do not seem to have a strong voice in some of these organisations due to our limited numbers. We have therefore, in the recent past, embarked on an exercise to collect and submit as many Curricula Vitae as possible of our Zambian professionals for onward submission to the international organisations.

(b) the Government also undertakes campaigns in cases where candidates are to be elected. This programme covers all parts of the electorate and also involves both Presidential and ministerial letters to be sent in this respect. In some instances, special envoys are sent outside the country in order to physically lobby for support for the candidate.

(c) in line with this, there is usually a campaign budget under which the Government meets the cots associated with the campaign, such as, travel for the special envoy as well as for the candidate.

Mr Speaker, for the above reasons, it can be deduced that the Zambian Government, in practice, does indeed support all Zambian candidature in international organisations and will continue doing every thing possible to ensure that the existing number increases.

May I lay this document on the Table.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Mulongoti laid the document on the Table.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Kasongo (Bangweulu): Mr Speaker, most of the countries which were liberated by Zambia have recorded the highest number of representatives in international organisations, implying that maybe our lobbing strategies are weak. Are we going to improve our approach and lobbying strategies so that we should also record the highest number of representatives in international organisations?

Mr Mulongoti: Mr Speaker, in my answer I said that the Government had taken measures to increase the number of Zambians working in international organisations. What more would you do if you have put measures in place. What more are you looking for?

I thank you, Sir.

Laughter

Mr Lubinda: Mr Speaker, could the hon. Minister reconcile the statement he has made now that his Government is coming up with measures to encourage many Zambians to work in international organisations with the statement that was made not too long ago, that Zambians who are working abroad are unpatriotic. How does he reconcile the two? How can the people who are unpatriotic also be encouraged to go and work abroad?

Mr Mulongoti: Mr Speaker, since there are no scores who said it, I am reluctant to answer this question.

Thank you, Sir.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

CONNECTION OF LUKULU DISTRICT TO THE NATIONAL GRID

45. Mr Imenda asked the Minister of Energy and Water Development when Lukulu District would be connected to the National Grid either via Limulunga or Kaoma.

The Deputy Minister of Energy and Water Development (Mr Sichilima): Mr Speaker, the Government is committed to ensuring that Lukulu District is connected to the electricity grid in the shortest possible time. I wish to inform the nation through this House that preliminary assessments have been made for the connection of Lukulu District to the electricity grid.

My comment on the assessments is that, it is more economically viable to connect the district from Kaoma as more beneficiaries will be captured through this route.

I further wish to inform the House that the ministry is currently undertaking a Rural Electrification Master Plan Study (REMP) over a period of eighteen months with the help of the Japanese Government through JICA. The REMP is expected to streamline the implementation of rural electrification projects in the country. A provincial consultative workshop was held for Western Province in Mongu on 9th November, 2006 at which all districts were represented through their respective Planning Units. All district plans in terms of electrification needs were submitted and prioritised. The implementation of the electricity projects at the provincial level will be based on these priorities indicated in the REMP.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Imenda: Mr Speaker, is the hon. Minister of Energy and Water Development aware that Lukulu was provided for in 2003 with K11.1 billion for the same facility. I would like to know how much has been spent ever since.

Mr Sichilima: Mr Speaker, this is an ongoing project. As regards how much has been spent, it is a new question. We have to come back later with an answer.

I thank you, Sir.

HYDRO-ELECTRICITY FOR SATELENGE FALLS

46. Mr Imenda asked the Minister of Energy and Water Development when Satelenge Falls along the Kabombo River in Lukulu District will be developed for hydro-electricity to enable ZESCO supply electricity to Lukulu and Kabompo Districts.

Mr Sichilima: Mr Speaker, the Ministry of Energy and Water Development has a programme to assess the potential for generating hydro-electricity from all possible sites throughout the country. Through the development process of the Rural Electrification Master Plan, the resource potential for each area, which includes Satelenge Falls along the Kabompo River, will be done in 2007. When the resource assessments and the associated costs are done, the Government will commence mobilisation of the required funds to implement the identified projects.

I thank you, Sir.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear! Quality!

Mr Speaker: Order! The hon. Member has already asked his supplementary question. He cannot do it twice or more.

Hon. Members: No.

Mr Speaker: Oh, he has not.

Mr Imenda: Mr Speaker, is the hon. Minister of Energy and Water Development aware that there is a critical shortage of energy in the country and that the supply needs to be supplemented by all these small falls countrywide.

Mr Sichilima: Mr Speaker, yes, we are aware, that is the reason the assistance has been given throughout the country to see if we can increase the supply. Just this morning, I was officiating a programme in which this Government and the Indian Government have joined through ZESCO and Tata who are going to work in Ithezi-thezi and Kalungwishi which has since been advertised.

I thank you, Sir.

COST OF GOVERNMENT PROPERTIES

47. Mr Lubinda asked the Minister of Works and Supply:

(a) when and at what cost the following Government properties were constructed:

(i) State House
(ii) State Lodge
(iii) Lusaka Central Police
(iv) Lilayi Police School
(v) Kamwala Remand Prison, and
(vi) University of Zambia, and

(b) how often and at what cost each property above had been rehabilitated up to December, 2005.

Mr Tetamashimba: Mr Speaker, I wish to inform the House as follows:

Mr Speaker: Order!

Business was suspended from 1615 hours until 1630 hours.

Mr Tetamashimba: Mr Speaker, before business was suspended I was about to give the House some information relating to some Government properties.

Therefore, I wish to inform the House as follows:

State House

State House main building was constructed in 1935. The cost of construction is not known. State House has been receiving superficial rehabilitation from the time it was constructed. However, major renovations were done in the following years:

   Year     Cost

1999 - 2001      K2.1 billion

October 2005 - December 2006  K835 million

State Lodge

State Lodge was constructed between 1935 and 1953. The cost of construction is not known. Major renovations include:
      
Year      Cost
  1991 - 1992    K11,728,910
  2001     K150,000,000

Lusaka Central Police Station

The Lusaka Central Police Station was constructed in 1958 by the British Colonial Government. The actual cost of construction is not known, as workers from colonial administration cannot be traced.

Rehabilitation works have been continuous. However, the total amount spent on rehabilitation works up to December, 2005 is K2 billion.

Kamwala Remand Prison

Kamwala Remand Prison was constructed between 1959 and 1962. The cost of construction is not known.

Major renovations were done in the following years:

(a) 1964 – prisons improvements at the cost of £750;

(b) 1966 – improvement of sewerage and sewer system at £4,000;

(c) 1966 – electrical reticulation at £213;

(d) 1975 – maintenance was at a cost of K26,273.60;

(e) 1977/78 - construction was at the cost of K2,637.65;

(f) 1989 – repairs at a cost of K72,517.25; and

(g) 1998/99 – razor wire at a cost of K7,292,202.75;

Lilayi Police School

(a) the police college was constructed between 1952 and 1955. The cost of construction is not known; and

(b) the rehabilitation of the college infrastructure has been a continuous exercise and has been dependent largely on availability of resources.

The total cost of rehabilitation works and extension up to 2005 is K167,505,509.

University of Zambia

The University of Zambia Main Campus was constructed from 1965 to 1968 at an estimated cost of £2,500,000. There have been no major rehabilitation works at the university save for routine maintenance work to the buildings, fittings and fixtures. However, in 2004, the Government released K4.8 billion towards renovations of the university.

I thank you, Sir.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Lubinda: Mr Speaker, the British Archives goes back to the 18th Century and I am sure this Government could access this information from the British Archives.

However, Lilayi Police School was built in 1952 and since then, it has only received a total of K167 million for rehabilitation as opposed to State House which was allocated K3 billion between 1999 and 2005. Does this Government have any plans whatsoever to rehabilitate those ramshackle buildings, particularly the houses in which our trainees and police officers live in Lilayi Police Camp to some standard of sanity that is acceptable for human habitation?

Mr Simbao: Mr Speaker, I thank the hon. Member for Kabwata for being so concerned about the welfare of the police. I would like to assure him that this Government is equally concerned. In fact, there are already plans to upgrade almost all the living quarters of the police officers starting probably this year up to 2011. So, it is possible that we might see a lot of new construction for police housing. I must state that we have all seen the houses that police officers are occupying and no one is happy about this. It is for this reason that the Ministry of Home Affairs has plans to improve accommodation for the police.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Sikota: Mr Speaker, out of the K3 billion which has been spent on State House renovations, how much of that has been spent on the houses of the support staff who live in State House Compound?

Mr Simbao: Mr Speaker, as regards to the exact figure, I might not be able to give it. However, we have had to upgrade the water system and do the same for the sewerage system at the State Lodge Police Camp. The hon. Member is going to see when the budget comes to this House that there is a lot of money that has been put in trying to upgrade the living quarters of the police at State House and State Lodge.

I thank you, Sir

Hon. Government Member: Hear, hear!

Mr Mooya: Mr Speaker, do we not need a new State House? I am asking because in the last six years, it has cost the Government K3 billion to carry out maintenance works. Secondly, from our own knowledge, why can the hon. Minister not ask his quantity surveyor to cost State House so that we know how much it costs?

Mr Simbao: Mr Speaker, I thank the hon. Member who is a Civil Engineer for asking that question. The first question is very difficult to answer. I do not understand why we should put up a new State House. The hon. Member who is an engineer knows that infrastructure needs maintenance. If you have to keep anything in good shape, you have to maintain it. Maintenance costs money and that is what keeps something in good shape.

As regards the second question, State House is a group of complicated buildings and because of that, it needs to be kept in a certain condition which can be quite expensive. That is why we are talking about K3 billion. We cannot make cheap renovations to an expensive place. Otherwise, we will bring down the standards for other people to come. State House is for the whole country. Another President will come in. If this President does not make good of it, the other President will definitely come and make it good. So, it is incumbent upon each Government to keep State House to the expectation of the whole country and the world. So, the renovations and maintenance at State House is not going to be cheap. They would be expensive all the time. I believe that for the moment, what we have at State House is sufficient.

The second question relating to costing State House is a good one. Since we seem not to find the cost of constructing State House, the next step could be for us to cost it. We shall see if we can do that in the next budget because it is a quite late for this budget.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Mukanga: Mr Speaker, I would like to find out whether there is a standard inventory for Government infrastructure for record’s sake?

Mr Simbao: Mr Speaker, there is a standard inventory for some buildings of Government and it is kept at the Building Departments.

I thank you, Sir.

LUSAKA TARMAC ROADS

Mr Lubinda asked the Minister of Works and Supply what the total length of tarmac roads in Lusaka was in 1965 and 2005.

Mr Tetamashimba: Mr Speaker, in 1965, there were 180 kilometres of paved roads in Lusaka District and in 2005, there were 850 kilometres of paved roads in Lusaka District respectively.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Lubinda: Mr Speaker, from the answer which sated that there were 180 kilometres of paved road in 1965 as opposed to 850 in 2005, I would like to find out from the hon. Minister whether he also aware of the fact that as opposed to 184000 motor vehicles in 2005, there were hardly 4000 vehicles in 1965. Could he, therefore, suggest to this House what his Government is doing to ensure that the tarmac is maintained so that there is freedom of driving and that the roads are maintained because as things are now, the roads are being damaged because of the congestion on the 850 kilometres of road to save 184,000 motor vehicles?

Mr Tetamashimba: Mr Speaker, as at independence, it is true that there were very few motor vehicles. Some of the reasons are that –President Kaunda has always told us that there were less than two graduates at that time and therefore, there were very few people, if any, who had access to finances to buy vehicles unlike now, when there are many people who are buying vehicles partly due to the economic situation prevailing under the leadership of …

Interruptions

Mr Tetamashimba: I would like to say that if the New Deal Government is in the process of looking at Lusaka, can we concentrate on Lusaka as a city continuously in the next five to six years or we should look at other areas such as Lilayi area and so on. This Government is in the process of undertaking feasibility suggest to decongest the city.

You may wish to know that the ministries are going to put up a ring road in Lusaka to make sure that there is no congestion of vehicles within the city. This is only happening because of the economic boom as a result of the economic policies that President Mwanawasa has put in place with hard working ministers led by His Honour the Vice-President.

I thank you, Sir.{mospagebreak}

TEACHING HOURS

49. Mr Mwangala asked the Minister of Education:
 
(a) how many teaching hours were lost by schools in the Nalolo Parliamentary Constituency through teachers who travelled long distances to the office of the District Education Board Secretary to collect their salaries in 2004 and 2005;

(b) what the effects on the quality of education and examination results at Grade Seven level in the same period were; and

(c) what measures the ministry had taken to ensure that teachers’ monthly salaries were sent to their respective schools.

Ms Changwe: Mr Speaker, 960 man hours were lost by one school, Sipungu School through travelling long distances to the Office of the District Education Board Secretary (DEBS) to collect their salaries in 2004 and 2005. Sipungu School is 148 kilometres from the DEBS office. It is only one teacher who travels to collect salaries at a time.

Sir, 6,336 man hours were lost by the thirty-three schools per annum. These are schools which are about fifteen kilometres from the DEBS office. Only one teacher from each school travels to collect salaries per month.

Grade seven results are affected by several factors, including non-availability of teachers and learning materials, individual pupil ability and several other motivation factors. The Grade seven results may not, therefore, be easily attributed to one factor, namely the absence of teachers for specified periods. However, the loss in man hours does not affect the results since only one teacher per school would travel to collect salaries and classes are taken care of by teachers who remain in the schools as can be seen by the improved performance from 2004 to 2005. In 2004, the performance was at 68 per cent for grade seven while in 2005 it was at 73 per cent.

Sir, the hon. Member wanted to know what measures the ministry had taken to ensure that teachers’ monthly salaries were sent to their respective schools. No measures have been taken to ensure that teachers’ monthly salaries are sent to their respective schools because of lack of security, insufficient funding for transporting salaries, poor road network and insufficient transport.

However, the ministry has issued instructions for teachers to open bank accounts in areas where there are banking facilities.

I thank you, Sir.

UNCONFIRMED TEACHERS

50. Mr Mwangala asked the Minister of Education:

(a) how many teachers were not confirmed in the appointments in Nalolo Parliamentary Constituency from 2003 to 2005 school by school ; and

(b) what measures have been taken to normalise the appointments.

Ms Changwe: Mr Speaker, seventy- four teachers were not confirmed in Nalolo Parliamentary Constituency from 2003 to 2005 as follows:

School by School  Male  Female
Kalamba  1  2
Kataba   0  2
Kaonga Lweti  1  1
Lilyachi  0  3
Likulwe  2  0
Litoya   3  2
Lyamutinga  0  1
Lwimba  0  1
Likuma  0  0
Lyatimbwa  1  1
Mapungu  1  5
Makukutu  1  2
Mande   3  0
Mooyo Basic  2  1
Matongo  0  2
Maombe  1  1
Namabunga  0  1
Nasilimwe  1  1
Nan’wanyi  0  2
Nasiwayo  0  3
Nambwaye  0  2
Nalolo   0  2
Nanjucha  0  1
Suu   0  2
Shekela  1  0
Silowana  0  4
Sikana   1  1
Mooyo High   1  1
Ukolo   2  4
Sinungu  1  4
Siyanda  1  2

Mr Speaker, five teachers were not confirmed from the 2004 recruitment. Sixty-nine teachers were not confirmed from the 2005 recruitment, totaling seventy-four. These, however, are being submitted to the Teaching Service Commission for confirmation and appointment.

Mr Speaker, I thank you.

Mr Speaker: Before, I call on the hon. Member for Lukulu East to move on to the next question, I would like the House to note the following correction in line 3 the word ‘influx’ should read ‘efflux’, meaning flowing out. Influx means flowing in.

The hon. Member for Lukulu East can now ask his questions. He is not in the House and questions number 51 and 52 lapses.

COMESA MARKET

53. Mr Lubinda: asked the Minister of Commerce, Trade and Industry:

(a) who owned the COMESA Market along Lumumba Road in Lusaka;

(b) how many stalls/stands/shops were at the market at (a) above and what average rental is paid for the stalls/stands/shops on a monthly basis;

(c) how many traders operate at the market and what their distribution by nationality was;

(d) how much VAT was collected from the market per month; and

(e) whether there were other countries with such markets for cross border traders and, if so, which countries these were.

The Deputy Minister for Commerce, Trade and Industry (Ms Siliya): Mr Speaker, COMESA Market along Lumumba Road in Lusaka is owned by the Cross Border Traders Association. The members purchased the land where the market is situated from SN Panel Beaters who were represented by a Mr Mutanda. The Association Patron, the Secretary-General of COMESA holds the Title Deeds on behalf of the Members.

With regard to how many stalls/stands/shops mentioned in (a) above and what average rentals are paid for the stalls/stands/shops on the market basis, there are  1,055 shops, containers/stalls and tables and the break down is as follows:

Category No. Rent (ZMK) Total (ZMK)
Shops 188 65,000 12,220,000
Containers (20 foot) 32 120,000 3,840,000
Stalls 455 35,000 15,925,000
Tables 380 25,000 9,500,000
Total 1,055 245,000 41,485,000

As for how many traders operate at the market and what their distribution by nationality is, as at August 2006, there were 995 registered members and the breakdown by nationality is as follows:

 Nationality Number
 Zambians 624
 Tanzanians 224
 Congolese DR 94
 Zimbabweans 36
 Rwandese 8
 Ugandans 4
 Burundese 3
 Angolans 1
 Tswanas 1
 Total 995

In response to the question on how much Value Added Tax (VAT) is collected from the marker per month, the Cross Border Traders Association does not engage in trade, but only facilitate trading space for its members. The association members importing products into Zambia pay VAT at the border point of entry. For members who purchase goods and services locally, it is usually included in the purchase price. From the foregoing, it is difficult to exactly ascertain how much is collected from the market per month. The Zambia Revenue Authority does not keep a separate database for association members for VAT purposes.

I thank you, Sir.

Hon. Members: Hear, hear!

Ms Siliya: Oh! Number (e).

With regard to other countries with similar COMESA markets for Cross Border Traders, currently, we only know of Zimbabwe which runs a similar COMESA market.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Lubinda: Mr Speaker, I would like to thank the hon. Minister for that elaborate answer. However, from her response, I would like to find out whether she is aware of the fact that the Cross Border Traders Association has been looking for funds to put up a descent modern market structure which they have failed to acquire. If so, is there anything that her ministry is considering to uplift the standard of the market because, as she well knows and as the hon. Minister of Local Government knows, the market does not have a good environment for trade.

The Minister of Commerce, Trade and Industry (Mr Konga): Mr Speaker, the responsibility of providing trading space by COMESA Members is theirs to request through the Ministry of Local Government and Housing to the Lusaka City Council to provide the land from which they could trade.

Interruptions

Mr Konga: Maybe the Hon. Speaker can intervene because what the hon. Member of Parliament asked for is space for the COMESA Market, is that correct?

Interruptions

Mr Konga: If they are looking for resources to build a modern market, it should come from their collection because that market is not owned by the Government. That is a private trading institution and members collect their own resources. As you have heard, they collect K41 million per month which, after, they have paid their levies to the Government, they should remain with enough money to enable them upgrade the market.

PLASTIC PRODUCTS IN ZAMBIA

54. Mr Lubinda asked the Minister of Commerce, Trade and Industry:

(a) how many companies countrywide produce plastic carriers such as shopping bags and containers for consumer products;

(b) how much plastic was used in 2005 in the manufacture of the products above; and

(c) what taxes and levies were charged on the manufacture and sale of these plastic carriers and containers?

Ms Siliya: Mr Speaker, according to the Central Statistical Office (CSO) Establishment Register of 2005, there were twenty-Six companies in the plastic product sub-sector.

Sir, as for how much plastic was used in 2005 in the manufacture of products above, it was rather difficult for my ministry to give an answer to this question because we are not sure. I know that hon. Member of Parliament for Kabwata is very learned, but we are not sure if he was asking us to give information on the raw materials or the actual manufacture of products because it is not the plastic that is imported to make plastic ware, but the granules that are imported and are moulded into plastic. Therefore, currently, we are not able to give an answer until we get the clarification on the question.

Sir, as for question (c), the Value Added Tax of 17.5 per cent is charged on the manufacture of plastic carriers and containers.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Lubinda: Sir, I would like to find out from the hon. Minister if she is aware of any plastics that are recycled by these manufacturers and that is what I would like her to inform us about.

Secondly, I would like to know whether her Government is thinking of introducing a plastic levy so it can be used to clean up our city of all the plastics that are littering it.

Mr Konga: Mr Speaker, the Government is aware of the environmental hazard that plastics pose to the environment. At the moment, the Government is encouraging the private sector to set up factories that will recycle plastics on the streets to reduce the environmental hazard, but at the moment, there is no plant that recycles plastics. We are not yet thinking of imposing the plastic levy, but we are encouraging packaging manufacturers to also consider producing paper bags as opposed to plastic bags, which we think will mitigate environmental degradation.

I thank you, Mr Speaker.

Dr Scott: Mr Speaker, I heard the word ‘encourage’ for about four or five times during the hon. Minister’s last answer. I wonder whether this Government appreciates that people, like plants, do not respond to words such as ‘encouraging’ or ‘urging’ as the hon. Minister mentioned. He said they will ‘urge’ the private sector. As far as I am concerned, business people respond to incentives, subsidies, taxes, licences and regulations. Could he tell us what specific measures he has put in place that will induce any rational business person to either recycle or make paper bags?

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Konga: Mr Speaker, my Government, through the Zambia Development Agency has given incentives to the private sector. There are a lot of incentives that the Government is giving to the private sector to invest in this country and foster the economy. As you are aware, the Government would like this economy to be driven by the private sector and these are the indigenous Zambians. For that reason, the Government has the Zambian Development Agency Act, which has incentives for the business sector.

I thank you, Sir.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

OUTSTANDING HOUSING ALLOWANCES FOR PUBLIC SERVANTS AND DEFENCE FORCE WORKERS

58. Mr Kasongo asked the Vice-President:

(a) how much money had so far been paid to public servants and defence force workers to clear outstanding housing allowances; and

(b) how much money was outstanding and when it would be paid.

The Deputy Minister in the Vice-President’s Office (Ms Lundwe): Mr Speaker, I wish to inform the House that housing allowance payments are in three categories and they have been paid up todate from January 2004 as follows:

(a) Current Housing Allowance paid between 
January 2004 to October 2006   K282,088,666, 664.00

(b) 40 per cent Housing Allowance paid between 
January 2004 and December 2005   K53,100,000,000.00

(c) Six Bands Housing Allowance paid between 
January 2005 and October 2006     K76,340,000,000.00

Total         K411,528,666,664.00
       

However, the following are outstanding arrears:

(a) 40 per cent Housing Allowance    K2,879,885,489.00

(b) Fixed Bands Housing Allowance   K76,437,436,000.00

Total         K79,317,321,289.00
      
However, the outstanding arrears do not include Ministry of Health and other institutions that have not finished reconciling their data. The arrears will be paid as soon as funds are made available.

I thank you, Sir.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Kasongo: Mr Speaker, I would like to find out whether His Honour the Vice-President has been working more closely with the Ministry of Finance and National Planning to ensure that the same funds which are owed to our workers are paid as quickly as possible.

The Vice-President (Mr Rupiah Banda): Mr Speaker, the answer is yes.

I thank you, Sir.

Laughter

Mr Mwiimbu: Mr Speaker, I would like to find out from His Honour the Vice-President whether the Government is considering paying workers’ housing allowances with the salaries every month to avoid arrears accruing.

The Vice-President: Mr Speaker, the answer is yes, again.

Laughter

Mr D. Mwila (Chipili): Mr Speaker, we are all aware that the agreement was put in place between Government who are the employer and three unions, the Zambia National Union of Teachers, Public Workers Union and The Civil Servants Union with regard to housing allowance, but the Government has not been paying. Is the Vice-president aware that by not honouring the collective agreement, the Government is violating the Industrial and Labour Relations Act and Employment Act. Could you comment on this?

The Vice-President: Mr Speaker, I am unaware.

Laughter

Dr Machungwa: Mr Speaker, His Honour the Vice-President has said that the Government is now able to pay housing allowance with salaries. From that statement, can I take it that the Government is now current except for some arrears that have accrued over the past few years?

 Regarding his answer that he is not aware that the Government is breaking the law by not paying housing allowances which is part of the collective agreement enshrined in the Industrial and Labour Relations Act and Employment Act, shall we take it that the Government does really consider these laws when it comes to this and that they can break them with impunity?

The Vice-President: Mr Speaker, I did not say that the Government is breaking the law with impunity. You know that we are honouring many of these obligations perhaps not to the extent that we should because of the shortage of funds.

In the case of the Ministry of Health, we stated in our reply that they have not completed the collection of data because of the demise of the Central Board of Health. The Ministry of Health is in the process of doing this and when money is available, we will pay.

I thank you, Sir.

Hon. Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Kambwili: Mr Speaker, I would like to find out from His Honour the Vice-President if this Government is considering increasing the housing allowance for teachers. K320,000 is 40 per cent of the teacher’s salary. As you may be aware, you cannot rent a decent house at K320,000. Are you looking at increasing housing allowance for teachers so that they can give quality education?

The Vice-President: Mr Speaker, I think it will be premature for the Government to answer that question at this moment. Therefore, it is up to this House to make those decisions as we discuss the Budget.

I thank you, Mr Speaker.

_______

MOTION

ADJOURNMENT

The Vice-President (Mr Rupiah Banda): Mr Speaker, I beg to move that the House do now adjourn.

Question put and agreed to.

The House adjourned at 1720 hours until 1430 hours on Wednesday, 24th January, 2007.{mospagebreak}

 

WRITTEN REPLIES

NUMBER OF VEHICLES, MAKES AND TYPES PURCHASED BY THE GOVERNMENT FOR CABINET AND DEPUTY MINISTERS

40. Rev Sampa-Bredt (Chawama) asked the Vice-President:

(a) how many vehicles and what makes and types were purchased by the Government for Cabinet and Deputy Ministers from January to August, 2006;
(b) how much money was spent on the vehicles; and
(c) whether the funds were budgeted for and approved by Parliament.

The Vice-President (Mr Rupiah Banda): Mr Speaker, I would like to inform the House that one motor vehicle, a Mitsubishi Pajero GLS was bought.

Sir, K161,294,250.00 (VAT inclusive, but exclusive of Customs Duties) was spent on the purchase of the motor vehicle.

Mr Speaker, funds for the purchase of the motor vehicles were budgeted for and approved by Parliament under Vote number 64/01/04/7/01/007 under the Transport Management Activity for the provision of VIP motor vehicles.

The K161,294,250.00 was released to the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting Services to facilitate the purchase of a personal-to-holder motor vehicle for VIP.

Mr Speaker, I thank you.

SPECIALISED MEDICAL EQUIPMENT

 

51. Mr Imenda (Lukulu East) asked the Minister of Health what measures the Government had taken to acquire specialised medical equipment for hospitals in order to minimise the efflux of Zambians on medical trips abroad.

The Minister of Health (Ms Cifire): The National Health Strategic Plan focuses on the attainment of identified National Health Priorities. These priorities are based on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and other national health priorities that are key to the improvement of the health status of Zambians.

Among these priorities is the strengthening of infrastructure and medical equipment for effective delivery of key health services. The Government of Zambia has among its priorities, the need to ensure that appropriate equipment is available at all levels of health service delivery.

Practical steps in achieving this include the countrywide rehabilitation of diagnostic and surgical services in Zambia. This is a project jointly funded by the Zambian Government and the Government of Royal Netherlands. Through this project, will be distributed around the country, forty- eight General X-Ray Units, seventeen Mobil X-Ray Units, twelve Fluoroscopy Units, twelve Image Intensifiers, fifty-one Basic Ultrasound Units, fourteen Big Ultrasound Units and ten Dental Units.

The Government of Zambia, through the Ministry of Health, recently revamped heamodialyis services at the University Teaching Hospital. Other services include cardiac operations being done at UTH and the Cancer Centre. UTH is also equipped with CT Scan which was not available previously.

I thank you, Sir.

51. Mr Imenda: asked the Minister of Health:

(a) what incentives the Government had introduced to attract medical doctors back home; and

(b) how many Zambian medical doctors working abroad had returned to Zambia as a result of the initiative by the Government to improve their conditions of service.

Ms Cifire: The Government of the Republic of Zambia has introduced car loans for medical doctors. The loans are given in the form of cash or physical cars.

The Government has also enhanced the on-call allowance to doctors. In addition, doctors working in rural areas receive salary supplementation and other incentives under the rural retention scheme.

So far, five medical doctors have returned from abroad due to the incentives introduced by the Government.

LOCAL COURTS IN NALOLO PARLIAMENTARY CONSTITUENCY

55. Mr Mwangala asked the Minister of Justice:

(a) how many local courts held their sessions under trees or in dilapidated buildings in the Nalolo Parliamentary Constituency from 2000 to 2005; and

(b) what measures has the Ministry taken to arrest the unfortunate situation above.

The Minister of Justice and Attorney-General (Mr Kunda): Mr Speaker,

(i) Mukukutu Nasiwayo Local Court Grade ‘A’

(ii) Nalolo Local Court Grade ‘B’

(iii) Shekela Local Court Grade ‘B’

(iv) Ukol/Mwandi/Nasilimwe Local Court Grade ‘B’

(v) Sinunguliliachi Local Court Grade ‘B’

(vi) Nanjucha Local Court Grade ‘B’

(c) Measures undertaken were to seek for funding from the Government to enable us build new court structures and rehabilitate the dilapidated ones but funding from the Government coffers has always been inadequate.

(d) I would further like to add that construction and rehabilitation of court houses is an on-going process and in each year’s budget we endeavour to provide for such projects. However, because the problem is spread across the entire country, it has not been possible to redress the problem in a single fiscal year due to severe budgetary constraints.

SCHOOLS BUILT OUT OF POLE AND MUD IN NALOLO PARLIAMENTARY CONSTITUENCY

56. Mr Mwangala asked the Minister of Education:

(a) how many schools were built out of pole and mud in the Nalolo Parliamentary Constituency from 2003 to 2006, name by name;

(b) whether there are any plans to construct permanent structures in the schools above; and

(c) whether teachers accommodated in houses made out of pole and mud have benefited from housing and rural hardship allowances in the period above and, if so, how many.

The Minister of Education (Professor Lungwangwa): Mr Speaker, Nalolo Parliamentary Constituency has a total of thirty-two schools of which thirty-one are basic schools and one is a high school.

There are no schools in Nalolo Parliamentary Constituency that were built from pole and mud from 2003 to 2006.

However, the following are schools in Nalolo Parliamentary Constituency purely built out of pole and mud (both teacher’s houses and classrooms) before 2003.

S/No. School  Year Founded

1.  Shekela 1951

2.  Suu  1960

3.  Likulwe 1984

4.  Mande  1988

5.  Sipungu 1989

6.  Ukolo  1995

7.  Namwanyi 1997

8.  Lyatimbwa 1999

9.  Lwimba 2000

10.  Matongo 2001

(b) The Ministry of Education has plans to construct permanent school infrastructure to replace pole and mud structures throughout the country. Priority has been given to replace pole and mud school structures constructed before 1964.

(c) 210 teachers accommodated in houses made out of pole and mud from 2003 to 2006 in the Nalolo Parliamentary Constituency benefited from housing and rural hardship allowances.

I thank you, Sir.