16/03/2024
ZAM Actively Participates in the MoFNP Townhall Meeting
The Ministry of Finance and National Planning of Zambia today held a town hall meeting at the Mulungushi International Conference Center on "Unlocking the Country's Economic Potential Through Enhanced Import, Export and Border Process Efficiencies." The meeting was held from 8:00 Hrs to 13:00 Hrs.
The town hall meeting aimed to improve the liaison system with frequent exporters and importers to facilitate efficient business operations at borders and exit ports. This included addressing challenges faced by businesses engaged in cross-border trade, communicating government initiatives to alleviate bottlenecks at these points, and devising an action plan to tackle administrative hurdles encountered by frequent traders, ultimately enhancing trade facilitation and efficiency at border areas and exit ports.
As one of the targeted private sector bodies, the Zambia Association of Manufacturers (ZAM) submitted industry-wide recommendations and easily implementable suggestions on how to unlock Zambia's economic potential through enhanced import, export and border processes.
ZAM President, Mr. Ashu Sagar, highlighted several challenges hindering cross-border trade in his submission, including slow customs clearance, inefficient permitting systems, high costs (tolls and taxes), smuggling due to weak borders, overly complex compliance processes, and unfair trade restrictions.
Mr. Sagar proposed several recommendations to improve trade facilitation and efficiency, including streamlining the permit issuance process, amending SI 8 of 2015 which regulates imports and exports, introducing a blanket sanitary certificate for manufactured food items, extending certificate validity from 2 to 5 years, abolishing laboratory costs borne by importers/exporters, and exempting non-dairy products from the dairy category definition and profile.
These measures aim to reduce bureaucratic hurdles, enhance regulatory compliance, and promote smoother trade operations for manufacturers in Zambia.
In attendance was the Minister of Commerce Trade and Industry Hon. Chipoka Mulenga represented by the ministry’s Permanent Secretary Mrs. Lillian Bwalya, Minister of Health Hon. Sylvia Masebo, Minister of Infrastructure & Urban Development Hon. Charles Mulupi, Minister of Home Affairs and Internal Security Hon Jack Mwiimbu SC amongst other senior government officials.
Below are some picture highlights of the event.
