By MAIMBOLWA MULIKELELA –
THE New Economic Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) Business Foundation will lead a trade delegation to Zambia in the next few weeks to explore the country’s investment opportunities.
NEPAD Business Foundation chief executive officer Lynette Chen said her organisation would lead a trade delegation to Zambia to explore investments opportunities following the country’s continued strong economic growth.
Ms Chen said the organisation was impressed with the pace of development taking place in Zambia.
She observed that the trade missions that have previously been organised by her institution to other countries have been successful judging from participating individuals and companies that have gone back to the places they visited so that they could firm-up their business interests.
This was announced in Johannesburg on Tuesday soon after Zambia’s High Commissioner to South Africa Muyeba Chikonde made a presentation at a networking forum. The forum was organised by NedBank and the NEPAD Business Foundation. The forum was also attended by Nedbank Chairperson and member of the NEPAD Foundation board of directors Dr Reuel Khoza, NEPAD Business Foundation Chairman, Mr Stanley Subramoney and the business community in South Africa.
In his presentation, Mr Chikonde highlighted Government’s plans with regard to the Sixth National Development Plan (SNDP) and provided insights for the private sector for them to have a better understanding of how to invest in Zambia.
In a statement issued in Lusaka by the Press Secretary Nicky Shabolyo, Mr Chikonde said the revision of the SNDP was meant to fall in line with President Sata’s aspirations of ensuring that economic growth translated into real human development.
The revised SNDP continued to ride on the Vision 2030 which aimed at transforming Zambia into a middle-income country by 2030. He said Zambia had in recent years recorded impressive Gross Domestic Product growth rates and the country was targeting to close 2014 at 7.3 per cent.
Mr Chikonde said the country has further shown it was an attractive investment destination through foreign direct investment in lows which have continued increasing every year.
The country is taking advantage of its landlocked position and now working to turn the country into a land linked country with easy access to countries in the region by road, rail, water or air.
