President Hakainde Hichilema says mining companies should give full effect to the local content law so that more Zambians participate and benefit from the sector.
And the President also challenged Mopani Copper Mine (MCM) to unlock more copper from its mining tenements and ramp up production as Zambia pushed towards its three million-tonne annual copper production target by 2031.
In his facebook post, the Head of State said he remained committed to ensuring that the country’s natural resources, copper chief among them, delivered real benefits to the people as he implemented the Grow Zambia Agenda.
President Hichilema said this after he met International Resources Holding (IRH) Chief Executive Officer Ali Rashed Alrashdi in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE) yesterday.
IRH owns Mopani Copper Mines together with ZCCM Investments Holdings (ZCCM-IH) and President Hichilema met Mr Alrashdi on the sidelines of his ongoing working visit in Abu Dhabi.
“In our discussions, we underscored the need for mining companies to give full effect to the local content law so that more Zambians participate in and benefit from the mining sector.
“For our part, we remain committed to ensuring that our natural resources, copper chief among them, deliver real benefits to our people as we implement the Grow Zambia agenda,” the Head of State said.
And President Hichilema said raising copper production to three million tonnes a year was central to his Grow Zambia Agenda and, therefore, Mopani was key to reaching that target for the benefit of its shareholders and above all, the Zambian people.
