Fri, 17 Mar 2017 11:01:51 +0000
By SANDRA MACHIMA
ZAMBIA’S Northern region will be turned into a trade hub for the Great Lakes Region, Finance Minister Felix Mutati has said.
Mr Mutati said the Great Lakes Region provided Zambia with a greenfield prospect for advancing the country’s economic diversification agenda through cash crop agriculture because it had a potential market in excess of 45 million consumers.
The Great Lakes had facilitation of private sector investment in world class trading amenities, and establishment of efficient water transportation systems using the Mpulungu Harbour.
He said the Government intends to transform Zambia’s Northern Sector into a trade and investment hub for the Great Lakes Region; comprising Burundi, Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda, Western Tanzania, and Northerly Zambia’s Luapula, Northern & Muchinga Provinces
Speaking when representatives from Agriculture Development Company (AgDevCo), a British government supported company, paid a courtesy call at the Ministry of Finance, Mr Mutati said the Zambian government was working with the African Development Bank (AfDB) to remodel Mpulungu Harbour to position it for increased trade and investments in the Great Lakes Region.
Mr Mutati met senior representatives of AgDevCo at the UK Business Council Seminar during his recent visit to the United Kingdom.
And AgDevCo country director Nigel Seabrook disclosed that his firm intends to invest US$ 30 million in the Northern Zambia Agriculture Hub and leverage on a further US $ 60 million from financial partners and potential equity takers.
“Our mission is to build profitable businesses which link farmers to markets, create jobs, contribute to food security, and drive economic growth,” stated Mr. Seabrook.
However, the Northern Zambia Agriculture Hub was a planned venture in the Northerly Zambia that was aimed at capitalising on markets in Burundi, Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda, and Western Tanzania, due to its strategic location near Mpulungu Harbour, and therefore, competitive advantage due to its proximity to a huge regional market.
