President Edgar Lungu and his South African counterpart Jacob Zuma have committed to reverse the trade imbalance between the countries. Zambian exports to South Africa stand at US$34 million, while its imports are more than US$2.6 billion. “We need to scale up efforts to strengthen bilateral relations and South Africa…
Police in North Western Province have impounded nine trucks with mukula logs. Eight people were arrested. More than 30 trucks countrywide have been impounded over the last month, in what appears to be an upsurge in the illicit trade of the endangered trees. “Eight out of the nine drivers are…
Zambia’s trade volumes to the Great Lakes Region have increased to more than 15 000 tons, following the decision to lift the maize export ban, says Zambian Minister of Transport and Communications Brian Mushimba. The minister says the modernisation of Mpulungu Port, the gateway to the region, will further bolster…
Improving fish trade between African countries was on the agenda during a recent Think Tank Meeting in Nigeria. “The overall objective of this meeting was to present the research and development findings and outputs by studies under the Fisheries Governance and Fish Trade Projects and to identify policy entry points…
Decisions made by South African and African policymakers now will determine the contribution the agricultural sector will make to the growing demand for food the rest of Sub-Saharan Africa is experiencing. Lulama Ndibongo-Traub, from the Bureau of Food and Agricultural Policy’s (BFAP) research section for Africa – at the annual BFAP…
The South African economy is actually growing between 3% and 4% - in contrast to the current figure of 2% - because the informal market is vastly underestimated, says Ernst Janovsky, agricultural economist. Janovsky, who addressed delegates at the AGM of the South African Grain Information Service (Sagis) about the…
Rob Davies, South Africa’s minister of Trade and Industry, expressed his commitment to increase trade and trade imbalances with Zambia. This comes two days prior to the minsters Outward Trade and Investment Mission to Lusaka from 24 to 25 July in which 22 South African companies will also partake. “This…
Mukula traders, reeling from the adverse effects of the moratorium on the export of the sought-after timber species, have dragged the Zambian government to court. Government last month imposed an export ban on several species, including Mukula, to curb illegal harvest and trade. The legal action comes only days after…
South Africa is the 19th country to sign the agreement for a Tripartite Free Trade Area (TFTA) in Africa. The area includes 26 countries from three regional economic communities: the Southern African Development Community (SADC), the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (Comesa), and the East African Community (EAC).…
The Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) has called for the harmonisation of veterinary legislation to unlock international livestock trade among member states. This as the World Health Organisation (WHO) said harmonisation of the laws will help curb disease. According to COMESA, the process can be expedited by…
An influx of smuggled sugar – now estimated at 20 000 tons a year - is negatively affecting the local industry. This according to the country’s major producer Zambia Sugar, who called for government intervention to halt illicit imports. “The smuggling of the commodity has created a black economy which…
Zambian officials continue to tighten the screws on the illegal trade in Mukula and consequently impounded a number of trucks, the Republikein reports. Charity Mwiya, manager of member services at the Namibia Chamber of Commerce and Industry (NCCI), said officials prevented six trucks with Namibian registrations to leave the country.…
The Regional Trade Facilitation Forum in Lusaka is working to strengthen food trade linkages between southern African countries. More than 195 maize and other grain commodity traders attended the meeting where buyers and sellers signed trade deals valued at US$100 million for the export of grain commodities. The forum was…
The South African Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) aims to increase trade and investment with Kenya and Tanzania. The department will lead 27 South African companies from various sectors on a mission to the two countries at the end of June, to identify trade and investment opportunities. Rob Davies,…
The Policy Monitoring and Research Centre (PMRC) says the maize surplus in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region provides an opportunity for Zambian maize farmers to exploit the north and East African markets. PMRC executive director Bernadette Deka says farmers can take advantage of price differentials between surplus and…
The 10% export duty on raw maize is a recipe for smuggling, says Wynter Kabimba, a former minister and leader of the Zambian opposition party, Rainbow. Kabimba said the export duty will ultimately make government lose colossal sums of revenue as grain traders resort to smuggling. “There are many bush…
The Southern Africa Development Community (SADCs) has harmonised fish trading standards which member states must follow within the free trade area. This will include the standard of fresh fish, chilled fish, canned sardines and quick frozen fish fillets. “We are urging Zambian manufacturers, traders and suppliers of trading in fish…
This could be the year of reform and renewed growth in African economies. Dr. Martyn Davies, Deloitte Africa’s managing director for emerging markets and Africa, said that structural reform of economies could be one of the mega trends of the year. “Usually this is impossible without a crisis. The shock…
Zambian farmers have asked their government to ban Tanzanian tomato imports in a bid to protect them against “unfair competition”. Farmers said the imports meant that local prices were deflated by as much as ZMW150 per 25kg box. The permanent secretary for agriculture - Julius Shawa - said although there…
The Grain Traders Association of Zambia (GTAZ) have agreed to put 245 000 ton of maize on the market, ending a standoff between the traders and government. The offloading of maize would start immediately and continue until May, said Chambuleni Simwinga, GTAZ’s executive director. “We must be responsible, and we…
Zambian business people appealed to their South African counterparts to invest in manufacturing and agro-processing in Zambia. Ms. Roseta Mwape-Chabala, president of the Zambia Association of Manufacturers, said Zambians appreciated South Africans’ investment in malls and franchising in their country, but appealed to them to put the same energy and…
The AGCO (agricultural company) corporation has expanded into Africa from their Asia Pacific region, and has said it hoped to offer solutions to small-scale farmers. “Our line of mechanisation, grain storage, seed processing and protein solutions supports the complete spectrum of farmers, from emerging sector to large [scale farmers] and…
