• AN artist’s impression of the new Kenneth Kaunda International Airport in Lusaka. The Government has released $25 million for the airport to be modernised. (Insert) An aerial view of the ultra-modern airport. Pictures by STATE HOUSE

By XAVIER MANCHISHI –
PRESIDENT Michael Sata has spelt out his Government’s resolve to modernise the country’s international airports in order to bring them to international standards.
The President said Zambia would have all her major airports upgraded to international standards, especially in view of the location of the capital city, Lusaka, which is ideal as a regional hub.
“Colleagues, I wish to share with you our Government’s efforts to upgrade and modernise our country’s international airports in order to bring them to international standards,” he said in a posting on his Facebook wall yesterday.
Mr Sata said Government was already developing Harry Mwaanga Nkumbula International Airport in Livingstone into an ultra-modern facility with the rehabilitation and the construction of a passenger terminal building of a capacity of one million passengers at a cost of US$40 million.
Works at the airport in the tourist capital located about 460 kilometres from Lusaka is almost complete and the commissioning of the project is scheduled for April this year.
Mr Sata said the Government had released $25 million for  re-development of Kenneth Kaunda International Airport in Lusaka with a passenger terminal building of four million at a cost of $385 million. He said the contractor was on site.
The Government was also embarking on the relocation and construction of a new Simon Mwansa Kapwepwe Airport in Ndola with a passenger terminal building of two million passengers at a cost of $522 million.
Mr Sata said Government was sourcing the funds for the Ndola airport from the Greenfield project.
“It is my sincere belief that our Government’s commitment to investing heavily in our country’s economic infrastructure such as the upgrading and modernisation of airport infrastructure will boost our agriculture, manufacturing and tourism sectors,” he said.
He noted that Zambia was at the centre of two regional growing markets in the form of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the Common Market for East and Central Africa (COMESA) and, therefore, offered immense opportunities for both local and foreign investors.
“In this vein, Lusaka, which is about two hours away from most sub-regional capitals by air, is ideal to be the regional hub for passengers and cargo,” the President said.
The SADC region has a combined population of approximately 277 million people and a Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of $575.5 billion while COMESA, which has approximately 459 million people, has a GDP of $508 billion.
The Head of State directed the Zambia Development Agency to intensify efforts in attracting investment in the development of airport infrastructure including terminals, cargo infrastructure, hotel and auxiliary infrastructure across the country.