[{"bbox": [96, 153, 1135, 471], "category": "Text", "text": "productivity has seen little to no growth between 2000 and 2014, contributing to the agriculture's modest share of GDP, estimated at 19% in 2022¹⁸. This stagnation is largely attributed to factors such as inadequate rural infrastructure, limited market integration and technology adoption, lack of innovation, and climate change. Despite these challenges, agriculture remains pivotal for poverty reduction and export diversification, especially considering its nearly 50% share in non-copper exports. For substantial growth, it is imperative to enhance the value added per worker within the agriculture sector, particularly among youth and women in rural areas, who predominantly rely on agriculture for their livelihoods. In particular, regarding gender equality Zambia has a dual land system of ownership, namely state and customary land. The Lands Act provides for the consideration of women with regard to state land but does not apply to customary land. Therefore, although most women have access to land, through their fathers, husbands, brothers, or sons, they do not have control over land."}, {"bbox": [96, 472, 1135, 790], "category": "Text", "text": "Opportunities for economic diversification and inclusion lie within food processing and agribusinesses. These segments not only create direct jobs but also generate significant indirect employment through demand for related services such as aggregation, storage, and logistics. In addition to this, new jobs can be created within circular business models, focusing e.g. on the production of organic fertilisers, renewable energy, or precision farming. There is a strong need to integrate circularity towards the promotion and investment in sustainable agriculture and food systems along entire value chains, ranging from production via processing to marketing. For Zambia to capitalise on the agribusiness sector's potential, improvements in quality and climate resilience capabilities are crucial. The country ranks low in business sophistication and training, highlighting a gap in business development and advisory services. Most smallholders, in particular women, operate at a subsistence level, with limited knowledge of good agricultural practices and market requirements."}, {"bbox": [96, 790, 1135, 876], "category": "Text", "text": "The underutilisation of digital technologies to improve commercialisation and the lack of full exploitation of regional and continental integration are notable gaps. Catalysing private investment remains urgent for Zambia's economic recovery, particularly beyond the mining sector."}, {"bbox": [96, 877, 1135, 1079], "category": "Text", "text": "The Government of the Republic of Zambia (GRZ) is committed to modernising the sector to improve climate resilience and increase agricultural production, efficiency and productivity in priority agriculture value chains, with a specific focus on women and youth. The GRZ is determined to diversify and modernise the sector, to improve climate resilience and environmental standards, in line with its Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) to ‘Sustainable Agriculture’ and ‘Sustainable Forest Management’. The current unprecedented historic drought and increasingly unpredictable weather pattern make it mandatory to invest more in these NDCs."}, {"bbox": [96, 1092, 291, 1120], "category": "Section-header", "text": "## Legume sub-sector"}, {"bbox": [96, 1132, 1135, 1568], "category": "Text", "text": "The legumes sub-sector in Zambia, particularly focusing on soybeans, common beans, and groundnuts offers significant opportunities for economic growth, employment, and improving food security. Soybeans have emerged as a priority value chain, attracting attention from various agricultural actors due to rising international demand. Despite the government's efforts to include soybeans in the Farmer Input Support Programme (FISP), access to soybean seed through this programme remains low, highlighting a gap in support for smallholder farmers. Soybean production will demand investments in proper organic fertiliser production, as soybeans require specific nutrients, particularly nitrogen and phosphorus, for optimal growth. Many African soils lack these nutrients, necessitating the use of chemical fertilisers, which can be expensive and harmful to the soil. Moreover, poor transportation infrastructure will make it difficult to move soybeans from farms to markets or processing facilities, leading to post-harvest losses and increased costs. Hence, it is valid for this action to focus on logistics, processing facilities and storage as well. Nonetheless, the increasing involvement of small-scale farmers in soybean production is noteworthy, as they become an essential supply source for processors, including for edible oil or animal feed production. Policy dialogues with Government regarding benefits of sustainable agriculture and sustainable forest management – both are among Zambia’s six NDCs – have started some years ago and"}, {"bbox": [86, 1620, 484, 1646], "category": "Footnote", "text": "¹⁸ https://www.trade.gov/production-agriculture"}, {"bbox": [1038, 1682, 1144, 1706], "category": "Page-footer", "text": "Page 7 of 32"}]