GONDWE

By JUDITH NAMUTOWE-
BANK of Zambia (BoZ) Governor Michael Gondwe, has won the prestigious ‘Central Bank Governor of the Year Award’ at the Africa Investor (Ai) Investment and Business Leader Awards, in Washington DC.
And founder of Java Foods Monica Musonda was bestowed with the ‘Africa’s Leading Women in Business Award.’
This was contained in a statement issued by Zambia Development Agency (ZDA) communications and public relations manager, Margaret Chimanse in Lusaka at the weekend.
The awards were presented at the Ai Investment Summit, held in association with the International Finance Cooperation (IFC) and the World Bank Group Trade and Competitiveness Global Practice ahead of annual meetings held on Thursday last week.
Dr Gondwe, who had been nominated for the second time in the Ai chief executive officers award, was a nominee in the Central Bank Governor of the year category, while Ms Musonda was a nominee in the Africa’s Leading Women in Business category.
ZDA director general Patrick Chisanga, said the Agency was elated that Dr Gondwe and Ms Musonda had been presented with Investment and Business Leader awards at the Ai Summit.
Mr Chisanga said that the ZDA had received the report about the Investment and Business Leader Awards with great pride and excitement.
“ZDA has received with tremendous pride and elation the confirmation of the news of the award of Central Bank Governor of the Year, Dr Gondwe, as well as Monica Musonda as Africa’s Leading Woman in Business. This is a reflection of the growing confidence by the international community in Zambia’s unfolding economic programme. It shows that the Central Bank under Dr Gondwe’s stewardship has recorded positive achievements, which have been noted and recognised by the international economic community,” Mr Chisanga said.
He said Ms Musonda was an up and coming indigenous Zambian entrepreneur who has achieved international recognition at a tender age.
“We are proud of her achievements in the agro-processing industry as managing director of Java Foods, We want to take this opportunity to encourage other Zambians to show total commitment in the advancement of their business enterprises,” he said.
Mr Chisanga assured the private sector that ZDA would continue to support and facilitate the growth of Zambian entrepreneurs from small, medium to large scale enterprises.
Ms Musonda was selected from a list of eight distinguished business women that included Isabel Dos Santos an investor from Angola, Folorunsho Alakija, an oil investor from Nigeria and Maria Ramos, the chief executive officer of ABSA.