During his tenure as Zambia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Harry Kalaba played an important coordination role in facilitating the government-to-government agreement that secured solar-powered hammer mills intended to help stabilise the price of mealie-meal countrywide.

The initiative was implemented through cooperation with the Chinese government, aimed at increasing national milling capacity by decentralising production at community level. In his diplomatic capacity, Kalaba supported discussions and assisted in formalising the cooperation framework that enabled the procurement and installation of the solar hammer mills.

This intervention was designed to cushion households against rising mealie-meal prices by reducing dependence on commercial millers, lowering transportation costs, and promoting small-scale local production. The programme ultimately contributed to efforts to improve food security and provide affordable mealie-meal, particularly in rural and peri-urban communities.

Kalaba’s involvement helped ensure that Zambia secured international partnership support to advance this key mitigation measure resulting in reduced cost of mealie meal for all the Citizens.