Agriculture provides the main support for Zambia’s rural economy, and because of this, growth in the agricultural sector is the clearest avenue through which poverty reduction can be achieved in Zambia. Yet despite widespread recognition of the strong connection between agricultural development and poverty reduction, there is continuing under-provision of public goods investments for over a decade. Zambia’s primary policy objective of achieving accelerated growth and competitiveness in the agricultural sector cannot be achieved unless adequate public resources are committed towards catalyzing the desired growth. Strong evidence from southern Africa as well as throughout the world indicates that long–term public investment in research and development, extension services, rural infrastructure, and food safety and quality systems have high pay-offs and are among the most important drivers of agricultural growth and competitiveness. Agricultural-led development has been identified by African Heads of State and Governments as key to restoration of food security and rural development on our continent. Under the African Union’s Comprehensive Africa Agricultural Development Program (CAADP) framework, Zambia, like many other members of the union, has targeted to achieve a minimum of 6% annual agricultural growth by making available 10% of the national budget towards the sector. In Zambia, it is important not only to increase the resource allocation to the sector in accordance with the CAADP target of 10%, but to allocate these resources productively so as to make the maximum contribution to sustainable growth within the shortest possible time. This paper examines trends in Zambia’s public budgeting for agriculture and the composition of the budget. This report does not cover tax expenditures by the government, private sector expenditures, and support from donors. Support from development partners channeled through government programs is included in the report. The report covers approved budget allocations and compares approved expenditures with actual expenditures.
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