Local authorities have opened an investigation into the disappearance of dozens of fertilizer bags that were allocated to a farming cooperative group in Ndola, Zambia.
Ndola police officials revealed that approximately 30 bags of fertilizer had gone missing. The fertilizer was part of a supply meant for Ukuboko Pakanya Cooperative located in the city’s Chipulukusu Township and had been distributed through the government’s Farmer Input Support Programme (FISP).
The commanding officer of the Ndola police district, Emmanuel Bwalya, said in an interview that formal complaints had been filed by aggrieved members of the Chipulukusu cooperative. Officer Bwalya also indicated that district police have implemented heightened surveillance around the allocation and distribution channels for this year’s FISP farming commodities, in hopes of curbing any potential illegal diversion or theft.
It remains unclear when exactly the 30 bags of fertilizer disappeared and police have not yet named any potential suspects. The fertilizer theft has angered cooperative members who will now likely face shortages.
Investigators from the region are calling on the public to come forward with any information that could help recover or account for the missing agricultural inputs that were intended to support food production by local smallholder farmers.
The investigation is still in the early stages as police attempt to unravel what happened to the crucial farming supplies.
