By KETRA KALUNGA
GOVERNMENT should provide incentive and encourage growth in the local value chains to ensure that the private sector flourishes, the Zambia Association of Manufacturers (ZAM).
ZAM Chief Executive Officer, Florence Muleya, said the government should also support the implementation of Statutory Instrument No. 110 of 2020, which waives duty off imported raw materials that could not be sourced locally.
She said in an interview that there was the need for deliberate policies to facilitate Zambia’s participation in the trade of intermediate and finished goods.
“Participation in the regional and global value chain will be very cardinal for the development of the sector as the Zambia manufacturing sector become more advanced,” she said.
Ms Muleya further urged the government to support technology advancements by providing incentives for investment in the sector.
She was categorical that this could be done effectively through the Ministry of Technology and Science in order to help facilitate effective local value chains.
Proper policies, she said, should be put in place along with providing inputs required in the local manufacturing sector.
Government and the private sector should ensure that the micro, small and medium enterprises were linked to both local and international markets.
