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Mining

Mimbula Minerals Limited, a subsidiary of a British firm; Moxico Resources plc is set to break ground next January and has projected to create about 800 permanent jobs for local Zambians over the course of next year.

Moxico Resources was founded by Melvin Brice, a successful mining, transport and fisheries entrepreneur in Zambia with his daughter Stephanie McAllister.

Moxico Resource plc Chief Executive, Alan Davies has revealed that the Mining Company will also seek to integrate agriculture into its mining projects with an emphasis on fresh produce as a working alongside local communities to realize their agricultural potential.

This is contained in a statement made available to the Zambian Business Times – ZBT by First Secretary for Press and Public Relations at the Zambia High Commission in the United Kingdom, Abigail Chaponda.

Davies conveyed these insights when he paid a courtesy call on Muyeba Chikonde, Zambia’s outgoing High Commissioner to the United Kingdom. Davies said Moxico Resource Plans to invest over $70 million in two mining projects, in Mimbula and Kalengwa areas in Chingola and Mufumbwe on the Copperbelt and North-Western provinces respectively.

He said copper production at Mimbula Minerals Limited in Chingola is expected to start early next year. Adding that the company will start construction for its Mimbula project next month following final environmental approvals with Kelengwa being on course for next year.

Davies said the mining firm will inject between US$ 30 million and US$ 70 million in the open pit mine and the mine is expected to produce 30,000 to 40,000 tonnes of copper annually. He added that the mining company has so far created about 200 jobs for local Zambians and was aiming at working and creating partnerships with the local community.

‘‘We are fully committed to Zambia and want to develop skilled employees across all of our operations and in doing so make sure that the benefits involve local people, contractors and suppliers,’’ he said.
Meanwhile, High Commissioner Chikonde said there was a good working relationship between the Zambian Government and the Mining sector adding that the industry has continued to record positive growth and there was an increased mineral production, expansion of existing mines and opening of new mines like Mimbula Minerals.

‘‘Zambia is  an attractive investment destination that is working to diversify into various alternative  investment areas which included tourism, agriculture, manufacturing and energy and but the mining sector has, and will continue to play a critical role in the economic development of Zambia,’’ he said.

 

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Mimbula Minerals Limited, a subsidiary of a

Companies

The Millers Association of Zambia – MAZ president Andrew Chintala has announced that the milling industry is not ready for the African Continental Free Trade Area – AfCFTA as it is lacking proper infrastructure to enable Zambian based millers trade on the regional and continental markets.

Speaking during a presentation on the sidelines of the AfCFTA Consultative meeting organized by the Center for Trade Policy and Development – CTPD, Chintala told ZBT that the cost of production for farmers in the country is too high hence allowing competition of products on the continental market will spell trouble for the local industry.

He added that despite the move being beneficial to traders, there is a lot more to be done by government in areas of infrastructure development and the cost of production stating that the biggest challenge is when the industry tries to control the price of finished products from the producer’s end.

“We welcome the move of Zambia signing on the AfCFTA because it is a good tool for traders but it is not a good tool for producers and from our-end, we are not ready, not until the cost of production for farmers in the country is reduced and government address the need of infrastructure,” he said.

Chintala further said that there is need to establish a robust local manufacturing industry first if traders from Zambia are to favorably compete on the continental market adding that the raw materials for primary production are relatively more expensive in Zambia, hence has urged government to address the constraints the industry is facing before promoting and fully implementing AfCFTA.

And Trade Kings Group Chief Engineer Ernest Mande told the Zambian Business Times – ZBT in separate exclusive interview that the manufacturing sector is equally not ready for the treaty despite the opportunities that it will offer Zambia.

He said that there is need to network and coordinate with the private sector if the country’s productivity is to be realized adding that despite the manufacturing sector being one of Zambia’s large sectors and employers, it is currently grabbling with power supply constraints, hence has urged ZESCO to coordinate the activities of the manufactures in line with its load shedding hours.

CTPD Executive Director Isaac Mwaipopo has also noted the need to do more if the country is to participate on the AfCFTA to ensure the interests of local and the capability of local traders are enhance and are ready by the time it will be operationalized.

 

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The Millers Association of Zambia - MAZ

Markets

Zambia Manufactures of Association – ZAM president Ezekiel Sekele said the association is ready to work with its members to realize the dream of producing local products that are fit for purpose and are complaint to the obtaining standards.

He added that the need to attract and incentivize the existing investors is critical and urgent through enhancing the level of participation of local investors. Sekele has since urged all local manufacturers to actively promote the domestic enterprise and reshape the mindsets towards “Thinking Local First” and “buy quality guaranteed local products”.

And Minister of Trade and Industry Christopher Yaluma has disclosed that the contribution of the manufacturing sector towards the country’s growth has for the past few years remained stagnant at about 8% hence the need for building the manufacturing sector in order to achieve economic sustainable development.

The minister has explained that the low contribution from the manufacturing sector is due to factors such as currency volatility, intermittent power supply and increasing commodity costs.

Speaking at the launch of the “Buy Local” manufactures expo in Lusaka on November 13, 2019, Yaluma further said that the country’s dependence on the copper industry has also made the economy vulnerable to commodity price fluctuations hence encouraging the diversification of the economy to sectors such as transportation, Tourism and Agriculture.

Yaluma further said despite the fact that the manufacturing sector has experienced some period of stagnant contributions to GDP over the last few years, the sector has remained resilient and survived through very challenging periods.

He added that he is happy to note the improvement made in the marketing, packaging and the quality of products being produced in order to deliver finished goods that are competitive on the domestic and regional market.

“Government has created and is committed to creating even a more conducive business environment to support faster growth in the manufacturing sector. I am aware of challenges local manufactures face in enhancing the productivity and competiveness of their products, however we will remain vigilant in addressing such constraints,” he said.

 

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Zambia Manufactures of Association – ZAM president

Tech

Finance Minister Dr. Bwalya Ng’andu has said the country will soon start importing power from South Africa’s power utility company ESKOM in order to cushion load shedding. Eskom has a more diversified power generation mix that include thermal, solar and wind sources.

Briefing the media at State House on November 14 2019, after the International Monetary Fund(IMF) paid a courtesy call on president Edgar Lungu, Dr. Ng’andu said money for the importation of power has already been paid to ESKOM. He said Zambia will spend about US$27 million on a monthly basis in order to import 300 megawatts of power.

Dr. Ng’andu added that the country has sufficient funds to sustain the importation of power from South Africa. He disclosed that government has settled the money it owed Maamba Collieries and expects that maintenance works on the power plant will be completed soon.

Meanwhile, Dr. Ng’andu said a team of three officials from IMF is in the country to assess the microeconomic situation. He added that the IMF team which will be in the country for six days expressed confidences that the country will triumph over its economic challenges.

‘‘In view of the pending power import, government has partially made a payment to ESKOM of South Africa for importation of power, in total government will be spending about US$27 million monthly for importation of power”.

”I can safely say here that we have sufficient funds for this undertaking. On Maamba we have settled the bill and we hope that maintenance works at the power plant will be completed soon so that it can resume full electricity generation capacity,’’ said Dr. Ng’andu.

The Finance Minister did not however state which expenditure line has been suspended to pay for the current power imports or weather the sundries or supplementary expenditure lines are adequate to sustain the imports.

The rainy season has now commenced in most parts of Zambia which has brought hope that the hydro power sources would in the next two to three months be replenished to resume full power generation. However, the medium to long term solution remains in diversification into thermal, solar, wind and nuclear power as the country has adequate local capability.

As for the proposed tariff adjustment, stakeholders have called for a more scientific method of arriving at the retail and commercial rates based on the cost of service studies. The final tariff is expected to reflect the projected and blended rate that would allow continued investment into more green and sustainable energy sources.

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Finance Minister Dr. Bwalya Ng’andu has said

Tech

The World Bank in collaboration with Rural Electrification Authority – REA and national power utility ZESCO held an energy sector knowledge sharing workshop on November 12, 2019 were the world bank reaffirmed its commitment to supporting the Zambian government to continuously improve and the Institutionalizing of procurement capacity and development.

The workshop were the Zambian Business Times – ZBT was invited, was designed to impart knowledge on enhancing the capacity of local contractors in the procurement of energy sector projects under the Zambia Electricity Services Access Project (ZESAP).

World Bank Country Manager Dr. Sahr Kpundeh said that the world bank has been supporting procurement policy reform and strengthening capacity of the Zambia Public Procurement Authority – ZPPA, enhancement of the Capacity of the Zambia Institute of Purchasing and Supplies – ZIPS and its Educational programme, and roll out e-Government procurement system.

He added that the world bank has supported the Government through working with ZPPA to review the public procurement system using the OECD Methodology called the Maps 11. ‘‘You may wish to know that one of the objectives of procurement done under the world bank financed contracts is the development of the local private sector, the Bank is therefore keenly interested to learn from the various stakeholders in the energy sector and would like to see how the recommendations would be implemented,’’ he said.

The event attracted CEOs from various energy sector, government institutions, representatives of various private sector constructors and consultants in energy sector.

Meanwhile, in a separate exclusive interview with ZBT, President for Zambia Association of Women in Construction, Dorothy Mulwila called for the reconsideration of women in construction sector saying from the 20% sub contracts, 30% should go to the women.

‘‘We are able, we have been trained to undertake these works to the satisfaction of the employer or contractor, but what it is now is that we are failing because of the requirements put up. The bid securities, and the qualifications that are needed cannot be met by most woman or indeed a Zambian, so we are requesting that these things are reconsidered,’’ she said.

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The World Bank in collaboration with Rural

Sport

TopStar is set to televise live the UEFA EURO 2020 final tournament play offs draw at the UEFA headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland slated for 22nd of November 2019 at 13:00hrs on World Football Channel.

For the first time, the European Championship finals will be spread across the continent, with stadiums in 12 different countries hosting games in the 24-team tournament. The competition kicks off in Rome, at the Stadio Olimpico which is home to Roma and Lazio, on Friday June 12, 2019.

In a statement made available to the Zambian Business Times – ZBT, TopStar Public Relations Officer Chisunga Kunda said with 12 countries staging final matches in 2020, there is no automatic qualification for hosts, meaning that all 55 UEFA nations will compete for the 24 finals berths on offer.

“Twenty places will be decided by winners of a new play-off system linked to the UEFA Nations League. The group stages conclude on June 24, with no matches on June 25 or 26, before the round of 16 gets underway with matches at Wembley and the Johan Cruyff Arena on June 27, with two matches played a day until June 30,” He said

Chisunga said after a couple of rest days, two quarter-finals will be played on each day of July 3 and 4. The two semi-final games will both be held at Wembley on July 7 and 8, before England’s national stadium also hosts the final on Sunday.

Subscribers will be able to watch their favorite stars such as Harry Kane, Virgil Van Dijk, Marcus Rashford, Raheem Sterling, Robert Lewandowski and Gareth Bale as they scuffle for the prestigious prizes in European football.

TopStar subscribers can also download the Star Times ON APP from either Google Play or Apple Store. Viewers can also stream or subscribe on the APP and watch all matches of the Euro 2020 tournament anywhere at any place on their smart device.

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TopStar is set to televise live the

Companies

The Zambia Congress of Trade Unions – ZCTU has expressed concern at the slow pace to detect ghost workers in various institutions which is depleting government coffers. ZCTU president Chishimba Nkole said it should be every citizens worry as to why it’s taking too much time to detect and investigate ghost workers, such that by the time they discover and close the loopholes, there is a lot of damages to the treasury already inflicted .

‘‘The Government administration team is supposed to be alert. Efficiency and good administration demands that we are on the job every day. Other than only waking up when there are some whistle blowers or after you have incurred significant losses and then that’s the time you start waking up to check?, it is good that this issue has been uncovered, but in future let’s not go to sleep and only wake up when it’s too late. It should not take that long, it is something that is supposed to have been discovered the moment it happened,’’ he said.

Nkole added that in a proper administration set up, there are a lot of stages and the last stage is signing the cheques or payments, but before the cheques or transfers are signed, responsible people must know what they are signing. He said it should not just be the question of having a team of officers and append the signature, people must be concerned and must be in the culture of checking and counter checking their work. Even the officers that authorized these payments must be made to take responsibility.

‘’So there are a lot offices tasked to detect that, and each one at every stage must understand what they are doing because they supposed to have a proper database to show that these are the people that are in respective stations, that is; those who are transferred, those who have passed on and those that are non-existence. All of them are supposed to be detected,’’ said Nkole.

The ZCTU president further said the country is well developed in terms of ICT, saying all that is needed is to have good technocrats who are able to help keep the database so that each month, government can understand and know how to deal with human beings only and not ghost workers.

Nkole said it all officers in the payment process should take responsibility for their assigned tasks that they are given. The ZCTU president was speaking in an exclusive interview with Zambian Business Times – ZBT in Lusaka, on November 11, 2019.

The issue of ghost workers drawing salaries from government coffers is long-standing and a payroll clean-up exercise carried out recently on the Copperbelt revealed that 4,000 employees were unaccounted for while K60 million ( about US$4.6 million) was being lost monthly through fraudulent activities on the payroll.

According to Secretary to the cabinet Simon Miti, the recent clean-up exercise for the public service payroll, the Farmer Input Support programme (FISP) and the Social Cash Transfer revealed glaring cases of abuse and fraud. The government is yet to fully complete its investigation and advise what actions apart from recovery of the funds will be taken on the staff found wanting.

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The Zambia Congress of Trade Unions -

Lifestyle

Tourism and Arts Minister Ronald Chitotela, has said that he wants the ministry to work with tourism operators to go onto big international media marketing platforms to attract more tourist arrivals into the country.

In a statement to the Zambian Business Times – ZBT by ministry of Tourism public relations officer Sakabilo Kalembwe, Chitotela who was speaking during a tour of Anambezi located in the Lower Zambezi National Park on November 11, 2019, where he is expected to have meetings with tour operators.

The tourism minister said showing Zambian tourism on channels like BBC, CNN and Electronic platforms would sell into a good share of the more than 700 million viewers that watch CNN and more than 6 billion people that access e-platforms. He added that there is need to also target the younger generation that now influence their parent’s decision on where to go for holiday making.

The Minister has since urged his Permanent Secretary, Amos Malupenga to engage the local tourism operators to seek support on meeting the advertising budget.

And a representative of the tour operators, Grant Cummings said private sector would be willing to come on board if the ministry came up with a good tourism-marketing plan. The Lower Zambezi is one of the four national parks that are highly visited by international tourists and major contributors to the Zambia’s tourism revenues.

The Lower Zambezi tourism offering has not been actively offering local Zambians attractive tourism packages which should be one of the agenda items so that the offering can be well appreciated across the country.

Some sections of society have welcomed the proposed copper mining in the Lower Zambezi National Park on the promise of better paying jobs for the locals when compared with the current jobs for lodge workers and tour guides.

The Lodge operators have been accused of making the offering exclusive and beyond the price points of local Zambians thereby making the tourism offering being barely unknown to a cross section of Zambians relative to other tourism hotspots like Livingstone and Siavonga.

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Tourism and Arts Minister Ronald Chitotela, has

Agribusiness, Markets

The Competition and Consumer Protection Commission – CCPC has noted with concern that the Poultry Association of Zambia – PAZ and Millers Association of Zambia – MAZ have continued to exhibit behavior of agreeing and subsequently announcing the prices of day old chicks and mealie-meal.

This development comes after PAZ and MAZ were cited of having issued media statements in which they announced the possible hike in the prices of day old chicks and mealie-meal on 28th and 29th October 2019 through the media which has been construed as price signaling.

In a statement availed to the Zambian Business Times – ZBT, CCPC Director, Restrictive Business Practices, Naomi Fulaza said the commission has found the conduct to be likely a violation of sections 8 and 9 of the Competition and Consumer Protection (CCPC) Act No. 24 of 2010, which clearly prohibits concerted practices and cartelistic conduct by players and members of the Associations.

She added that the commission also noted that the conduct by the two Associations signals price direction and creates anticipation on the market which is unnecessary and may distort independent decision making on pricing of day old chicks and mealie-meal by individual market players.

Fulaza further stated that both PAZ and MAZ have cases before the CCPC tribunal relating to similar conduct. She said the commission has since warned PAZ and MAZ not to engage in conduct that is likely to prevent, distort or restrict competition such as price fixing.

‘‘It is very sad and unfortunate that Associations such as PAZ and MAZ can continue to make pronouncements related to price increment when the commission has engaged them on the ills of such conduct. We would expect that such Associations should be in the forefront of ensuring that their members abide by the laws of the land,’’ she said.

CCPC is mandated by law to enhance competition and promote consumer welfare for the growth of the economy and benefit of the people of Zambia. This is according to the statement on November 5 made available to Zambian Business Times – ZBT, by CCPC Public Relations Officer, Namukoko Kasumpa.

some members of the public have accused CCPC of being toothless as the commission has been more of a warning commission than taking actual fines and punitive measures to prevent market price manipulation.

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The Competition and Consumer Protection Commission -

Lifestyle

The University of Zambia fourth-year student pursuing a Bachelor’s Degree in Pharmacy has developed a prototype of a body spray which can be used to prevent attacks on asthmatic and hypertensive patients.

20-year-old Florence Mulenga said the concept behind the project was based on the fact that most asthmatic patients were allergic to most perfumes and body spray, hence the need to develop a tailor-made body spray which would also act as medicinal agent to the patients. She said during her research, she also discovered that the ingredients used to make the spray had properties which can help to lower blood pressure, hence extending the study to hypertension.

In a statement made available to the Zambian Business Times – ZBT by UNZA Communications Officer Habeenzu Mulunda, Mulenga said the prototype which has been developed so far was specifically for asthmatic patients, therefore, more research and expertise would be required to help develop the solution more on how the spray can be useful on hypertensive patients.e

“The ingredients being used in developing the spray were also found to be muscle dilator meaning the product can dilate the blood vessels, hence, lowering the blood pressure,” she said. She revealed that a lot of people were already requesting for the product, however, she added that the product still needed a lot of research to make it safe for customer use before it can be commercialized and put on the market.

During her research Mulenga was supported by WECREATE I ZAMBIA, SOUTHERN AFRICAN NETWORK FOR BIOSCIENCES (SANBio), HIVOS and many other companies. She has appealed to the research institutions, donors and well-wisher to come on board and support the project in order to make the product a complete package that is safe and effective for public use.

Recently, Mulenga participated in a national wide biosciences competition called “FemBioBiz Acceleration Program” and her project emerged as the best-student start-up, which earned her sponsorship to represent Zambia in South Africa at the African Women Innovation and Empowerment Forum (AWIEF).

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The University of Zambia fourth-year student pursuing