THE Green Party has suggested that Zambia must take advantage of high copper prices on the London Metal Exchange and allow the mining sector to export more of the red metal.
Its party president, Mr Peter Sinkamba says this will jumpstart the economic recovery and growth as the mining sector is the largest contributor to the country’s economy.
In an interview in Ndola yesterday, Mr Sinkamba said Zambia should now start exporting more of its minerals so that it maximizes on the high prices of the commodity.
Mr Sinkamba has also observed a marginal stability in the Zambian Kwacha against major currencies in the first quarter of the year 2021.
He attributed the apparent stability of the Kwacha to the high prices of Copper on the international market. “Copper prices have gone up on the international market, this means that Zambia must produce and sell more minerals to prevent the Kwacha from depreciating”, he said.
And Mr. Sinkamba has blamed the outbreak of the COVID-19 as the main reason the kwacha has depreciated, explaining that the pandemic has made the country to import more than it has exported, thereby weakening the local economy. -ZANIS
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