President Hakainde Hichilema has officially commissioned the Kalene Hills Fruit factory in Mwinilunga with a call for more factories to be opened in all 10 provinces of Zambia.
With an installed fruit processing capacity of 24,000 metric tonnes per annum, the factory was expected to provide 150 direct jobs, over 700 indirect jobs and has so far enlisted 1,500 small and medium scale outgrowers to supply feedstock.
During the commissioning ceremony held on Wednesday 27th July, President Hichilema said investment in value addition was the only way to generate wealth and increase jobs, especially in rural areas. He said with prudent use of resources, factories such as Kalene Hills could be replicated in all provinces.
And speaking at the same event, Musika Managing Director Mr Reuben Banda said Musika had provided support to Kalene to the tune of US $120,700 (approx. K2,169,000) – under the Irish-aid ‘Making Agricultural Markets Work for Nutrition’ project.
“The support was towards the procurement of a mobile fruit washing machine, a refrigerated truck, and a genset meant to service the aggregation centres established within the local communities,” he said.
IDC Acting Group CEO Mr Henry Sakala said the factory was expected to assist cut fruit imports into the country and fill the nearly three decades void and facilitate Northwestern Province’s participation in the pineapple, mango, citrus and tomato value chain. IDC partnered with local institutional investors such as NAPSA and Workers Compensation Fund Control Board to finance the project while engaging local contractors for project management and on-site construction labour.
Story by Yande Chichoni