Ennety Munshya reports that youth cooperatives have been left in the dark as government fails to disclose truck Ownership and management
FOUR years after the launch of the fuel tanker truck youth empowerment programme, the government has yet to disclose details on truck ownership and management.
As the nation marks Youth Day, Clarence Muzyamba, Executive Director of the Zambia Empowerment Hub for Entrepreneurs and Skills Training (ZEHEST), has called for the depoliticization of youth empowerment initiatives to ensure that only qualified and deserving individuals benefit.
He urged the government to adopt a more strategic approach to these programmes, emphasizing that this is essential for achieving meaningful and lasting results.
Speaking ahead of Youth Day, Muzyamba expressed concern that youths are often used as scapegoats in empowerment programmes, preventing them from truly benefiting. He stressed that proper consultation and engagement with young people are crucial for success, warning that imposing initiatives without their input has repeatedly failed and should be reconsidered.
Meanwhile, an ongoing investigation by the MakanDay Centre for Investigative Journalism has revealed that nearly 100 youth cooperatives—five from each of Zambia’s ten provinces—were listed as beneficiaries of the fuel tanker truck empowerment programme. However, none of these cooperatives have taken ownership of the trucks, nor have they even seen them.
https://makanday.org/broken-promises-what-happened-to-zambias-youth-empowerment-fuel-tankers/
The scheme was launched under the former ruling Patriotic Front (PF) government. When the United Party for National Development (UPND) took office in August 2021, they assumed control of the programme.
Some cooperatives told MakanDay that they were issued motor vehicle registration certificates (commonly known as the “white book”) as proof of ownership, yet they have never seen the trucks or met any of the oil marketing companies allegedly operating them.
The tankers were supposedly part of a youth empowerment initiative, intended for cooperatives to operate and repay through a government loan scheme. However, the programme is increasingly resembling a deceptive scheme. To this day, the whereabouts and operational status of the trucks remain unknown—even to the cooperatives themselves.
“They pay a few from phase two, and then that’s it,” explained Mary Chilufya, a cooperative member based in Lusaka Province who requested her name be changed for fear of victimisation. “They do this so that when people ask questions, they can claim, ‘No, we do receive.’ That’s their tactic.”
According to a letter from the Ministry to the fuel tanker cooperative chairperson, seen by MakanDay, “on February 04 on Monday 27th January 2025, the Ministry made payments of US$ 1,000 each, of which some cooperatives have confirmed receipt, as can be seen from the payment vulture, the other delayed in receiving in receiving the funds were due to individual bank processes that had not yet reflect(ed) in your cooperatives accounts”.
Ironically, the letter—reference number MYSA/53/9/12—signed by the Ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Kangwa Chileshe, did not include the referenced payment voucher.
According to Chilufya, 50 cooperatives were informed they were recipients of the tankers just before the 2021 elections, with another 50 receiving theirs after the elections. She described the programme as rushed, with no clear rollout plan. Although some cooperatives received payments in 2022, these were erratic and inconsistent.
She revealed that her cooperative received a monthly payment of K16,100 from tanker operators through the Ministry of Youth, Sport, and Arts, but the payments lasted only a few months in 2022 and have since stopped.
The initiative was originally designed to have established oil marketing companies (OMCs) manage the tankers on behalf of the youth cooperatives for three years. During this period, the loan for the tankers was expected to be repaid to the suppliers—King long Motors Limited, a Chinese-owned automotive company.
The Ministry was contacted for comment on the whereabouts of the trucks and the identities of the beneficiaries but has not responded to MakanDay’s inquiry. However, on Sunday, February 9, 2025, Youth, Sport and Art Minister Elvis Nkandu appeared on ZNBC News, urging oil marketing companies to pay youth cooperatives their share from the tankers.
Those who are reported to have benefitted under phase one of the programme complained of being labeled as PF cadres or linked to the former ruling party and are facing segregation simply because they received support prior to the 2021 elections.
MakanDay has discovered that some cooperatives that are linked to phase two were only registered in 2022, after UPND took power, suggesting political favouritism and party-driven motives.
For example, Livingstone Fuel Tankers Cooperative, one of the cooperatives that benefitted under phase two was registered on May 25, 2022, according to the Registrar of Cooperatives.
MakanDay has accessed some of the contracts signed between the Ministry of Youth, Sport, and Arts and the youth cooperatives. The one-page contracts fail to clarify key details, such as loan terms and the management of the tankers, making accountability nearly impossible.
The youths were informed that after a three-year period, they would gain full ownership of the tankers. However, this condition is neither explicitly stated in the contract nor feasible, as the three-year period has already elapsed for the cooperatives enlisted in the program in 2021.
The confusion surrounding this youth empowerment programme appears to be more complex than it seems, with politically exposed individuals allegedly controlling the management of these tankers.
The youth cooperatives claim they are being used as scapegoats, while the real beneficiaries of the programme are the ones profiting from it.
One cooperative member told MakanDay that the cooperatives have repeatedly tried to meet with Ministry officials to discuss the way forward but have been met with excuses and resistance.
She further said that the cooperatives have requested to be linked to the Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) operating the fuel tankers but were informed that the OMCs have refused to work directly with them.
The AI-generated image depicting an eerie nighttime scene at a truck depot, symbolising the mystery and secrecy surrounding the fuel tanker scheme, is for illustration purposes only.
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