<p>Western Province Minister sets economic empowerment programmes such as the Cashew nut project as one of the key performance areas by which his tenure of office will be define by.Speaking when he addressed Civil Servants in Sesheke District recently, Mr Nathanial Mubukwanu said that there are a lot of economic programmes that government and cooperating partners have funded in the Province that have not realised intended goals.</p> <p>“I will ensure that all projects that have been started translate into meaningful poverty reduction projects,” he said.The minister cited the US$55.4 Million Cashew Nut Project as a ‘gold mine’ that the people of Western Province can use to emancipate themselves from poverty.“The cashew nut project will be rolled out across the province as early as possible in order for many people to reap its benefits,” Mr. Mubukwanu said.He said that supermarkets like Shoprite are ready markets for the commodity and its demand is there across the world.</p> <p>“I have spoken to Shoprite Checkers and they are ready to buy a lot of Cashew nuts from us. The price of Cashew nuts per tonne is higher than that of copper, hence this project will greatly improve the economy of the Province,” the Minister said.He said that in future, there will be need for each province to be aware of how much it is contributing to the national coffers and Western Province should hold its head high in this aspect.</p> <p>“Western Province should be proud of how much it will contribute to the national treasury through the Cashew Nut project because it will generate a lot of income for the targeted farmers and for the nation as large,” Mr. Mubukwanu noted.The Cashew Nut Project which was launched in 2015 and being implemented in Western Province of Zambia is a US$55.4 Million Project that is being funded by the African Development Bank with partnership with the Zambian government.</p>