By SIMON MUNTEMBA
THE Ministry of Foreign Affairs has convened a virtual economic diplomacy forum for missions abroad aimed at advancing the country’s implementation of economic diplomacy.
The two-day forum, which started on Tuesday focused on trade, investment and tourism promotion and was supported by the Ministry of Commerce, Trade and Industry.
There was participation from other Government ministries, state institutions and the private sector.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs public relations officer, Chansa Kabwela said the forum was also aimed at supporting the Zambian missions abroad in the complementary role of marketing Zambia in their respective countries in line with her foreign policy.
Ms Kabwela said in a statement that the meeting provided a platform for stakeholders to contribute to economic diplomacy to maximise the benefits that accrue to Zambia from interaction with the international community.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs Permanent Secretary for International Relations and Cooperation, Chalwe Lombe, noted that missions have worked diligently to contribute to national development.
He said the missions had facilitated resource mobilisation, investment, trade, technology transfer, technical assistance, and other forms of development cooperation. He said the ministry was aware of the challenges that missions were faced with in implementing economic diplomacy.
Meanwhile, Ministry of Commerce, Trade and Industry Permanent Secretary, Mushuma Mulenga, said Zambia has prioritised trade and investment as avenues for increased economic growth and contribution to the attainment of the country’s Vision 2030.
“The responsibility of ensuring that Zambia maximises on the benefits that exist from interaction with the international trade community lies with each one of us, more especially our missions abroad.
“As a country, we need to improve on information flow of the existing trade markets. When given the opportunity, let us market the country as a tourist destination of choice, a trade hub and an investment destination of choice because we have so much to offer,” Mr Mulenga said.
