PRESIDENT Lungu has facilitated the signing of two memorandums of understanding (MoU) with Huawei Technologies Company Limited for the construction of communication towers in rural areas and off-grid power plants.
Government also signed an MoU with Huawei to train 10 Zambian students in information communication technologies (ICTs).
Ministry of Transport, Works, Supply and Communications permanent secretary Charles Sipanje signed the first MoU on ICT training for Zambia while Zesco managing director Victor Mundende signed the one on the construction of communication towers and off-grid power plants.
Huawei Technologies Zambia Limited managing director Fan Wen signed for his company.
Speaking during the signing ceremony here yesterday, Huawei International Zambia solutions manager Thandizo Banda said Huawei is aware that Zambia needs technical skills for economic development.
“The intent of the MoU is to train the students for them to be able to train other Zambians,” Mr Banda said.
Earlier, President Lungu held a bilateral meeting with Huawei vice-president Dafeng Li.
“It gives me a lot of pleasure to have a chance to meet you in your home town Shenzhen. This is the ICT centre of the world and that is why you are here because you are the leaders in that area,” Mr Lungu said.
He urged Huawei to provide skills to Zambians so that they can own the projects that the company is undertaking in Zambia.
“I know you are very secretive about trade secrets and that goes naturally. But as your partners, we should be allowed certain knowledge to operate independently.
“There are some contracts you are executing for our people, which I must bring to your attention which are dissatisfactory, going by the nature of complaints Zambians have echoed through their elected representatives in Parliament. In this regard, I am talking about communication towers,” Mr Lungu said.
And Mr Dafeng said Huawei recorded profits amounting to US$46 billion, making it the best ICT company in the world.
Mr Lungu later met ZTE Corporation chairman Hou Weigui and Jilin Province director-general Cong Hongxia.
Mr Lungu told Mr Cong that Zambia heavily depends on agriculture.
“Most Zambians actually earn their living off the land, particularly in rural areas. Those constitute a very critical component of our people. They are the masses and most of them are peasant farmers. We have an inescapable duty as leaders to look after them and we can only improve their lives if we train them in improved farming methods and value addition to their products through agro-processing,” President Lungu said.
The President also held talks with Communist Party of China (CPC) Shenzhen Municipal Committee secretary Ma Xingrui.
Mr Lungu congratulated Mr Ma on his election.
President Lungu said he is privileged to be the first one from outside China to call on Mr Ma since his election barely a week ago.
“You have spoken elaborately about the history and development of Shenzhen, the insight will enable me and my ministers plan in what areas we want to engage in,” Mr Lungu said.
He said Zambia and China have been great friends for over 50 years.
The President also thanked the Chinese government for sending a high-level delegation to Zambia during the golden jubilee independence anniversary celebrations in October last year.
He also reiterated that Zambia is now emphasising public-private partnerships so that the people can also participate in the economic development of the country.
Development!!!!! Viva!
Salutations! All said, now lets put these commitments to action.
At the rate this Edgar Lungu is moving,I see him retaining the presidency in 2016.
Great news.
Only one question, who is going to pay for the com towers already built contrary to the tender specifications?
Lungu is a bold, wise and frank leader. He does not sweet-coat his words.
He tells it as it is
Lungu what is your long term plan? It seems all his doing is mending leaks. Why give more contracts to a company that has not delivered good results in the past?
This all hot air. The Chinese are now Very strategic in their foreign investment ventures.The best they can do for Zambia is invest in the extractive industry and nothing else.
Sata globe trotted a lot. What foreign investment did he come back with? Zero. All the foreign investment taking root in Zambia at moment was negotiated by MMD under Mwanawasa.
We shall see Lungu’ s fruits of his expensive foreign travel at a huge expense to tax payer.
Knowing PF totally nothing will be accomplished. History of PF in power is very clear that PF accomplishes the opposite of what it says and promises.
PF niba chimbwi no plan.
Viva UPND and HH.
It takes an entire country’s president to negotiate with a phone company. That’s how small minded and puny this PF government is. This activity is supposed to be carried out by ministers.
Anyway ni mu Zambia
It’s important to improve our ICT facilities, but as with many other things in Zambia, sustainability is the problem. For instance how does training only 10 students assist a population of 14million people? At the rate we’re going, we’ll not match neighbouring Zimbabwe’s literacy levels. Mugabe sponsors at least 1000 school leavers on government scholarships into INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITIES EVERY YEAR!!!!
My brother this is training trainers who will intend train others. This 10 is only in ICT but we have other students in different fields as well. Congrats Mr President
And when is he supposed to undergo the secret operation which was highly publicised,cause HE Edgar Lungu has been busy all the time he has been in China?
Already accomplished during period his staff been issuing unrelated statements. Check who said what in China.
Why not ask them to come and rectify the mess they have created?
What guarantees can they give that they will abide to specifications and erect high quality equipment?
They should be the ones crying out for our business.
I expect to see an outline of what has been learnt on this trip, and a roadmap of how that can be adopted in our country.
And when the wheels of implementation start turning, you will have that pat on your back, Mr. President.
Huawei has been in Zambia for more than a decade now.it’s not something new that lungu is bringing n moreover do we need as a country we have plenty of communication towers some of them will even be decommissioned by Ihs.I don’t think that’s going to benefit the nation in any way.
Huawei has been in zambia for more than a decade yes but has any government ever asked them to help in training trainers?lets give credit where it is due the president has clinched a great deal here and lets stop misleading others IHS Zambia has bought both MTN and Airtel passive network part and will only bring down towers where both MTn and Airtel built closer to each other one will be brought down in order to aid co-location and re-erected in un serviced areas this will aid universal access for all and hence improving research in our education sector which is a basic right for all regardless of geographical location
This Edgar goes to china with an entourage of 40 people to wine and dine for 2 weeks at the expense of tax payers money! Am sure the chinese are surprised at the careless spending of these Africans! They cannot imagine their leader coming and staying in this country for 2 weeks or indeed any other country because they have a lot to do at home while our president and his cadres are busy enjoying f00lishly. Something is seriously wrong in this country! Ati ifintu ni Lungu! Not just being illiterate but very dull, gullible Zambians we are!
BaMulongwe the President left on Thursday last week and he is arriving today … where is the two weeks?
Wat a brilliant president we hav ladies and gentlemen,hav u guys seen hw he is turnin things around?
@mwila,let the haters wait for the implementation of the projects and they will be amazed by the results. But I doubt it if they will be amazed coz they are myopic. They just want their own presido.
@mwila, senior citizen and change. You dunderheads never stop to show your foolishness, it is the same company which messed up the the towers already installed. Where were you and what is new about the news. I think the contract has just been extended for the installation of malfunctioning tower. Stop pooing and look. There is nothing to be proud of. It would have been better if it was a Japanese company.
Why not just ask China to take over the whole country?
Do not get excited people, ask yourselves who is going to pay for these projects. We have hundreds of projects that have stalled and we are still busy signing for more problems. If we cannot finish the current projects, how is it possible to finished these which have not even started anyway. !10 students to be trained in ICT, I’m sure EL has already lined up his relatives for that. A pity that govt through state house is continuing this trends of soliciting and signing contracts without the mandate of rightful departments.
In fact that is what we want. EL as President while Chinese upgrade our development pace. Not where U5 has gone to UK.
Can you imagine UK is creating a Security Guard Company in Zambia today in 2015 after 50years of independence yet we have had security companies doing very well in the past 30 years. Surely is this what we expect from these selfish colonial *****s. UK is all about slavery and stealing from poor countries. No real investment but to get money from already established companies in the name of pantu Basungu. Wake up under 5 HH. Nothing will come from UK. We know what they want out of are the mines through proxy arrangement by the Oppenheimer family. We know HH wants to come give mines to Anglo Americans. It will not do. We will give all mines to China.
I attended the chaps (HH) talk at the Royal African Society and all I gleaned was his arrogance and bragging about his wealth. He couldn’t even give a proper answer on how he would resolve his conflict of interests between his being president and his businesses. Still too far off the presidency me thinks
China supplies technology to Africa with no back up, once installed thats it, they will not supply any spare parts after that, remember the milling company in chingola, when the chines left the milling company could not find any spare parts to continue running the plant because the chines do not do any follow up on the technology they supply to Africa. In Europe there is a law that compels all companies whether local or foreign to continue supply the parts of any technology 10 years after the tech has been discontinued, this does not apply to Africa and the Chinese take advantage of this.
imwe ba paya farmer(pf),what credit shud we give ka edgar lungu? going by his name “chagwa”he will fall in 2016 to our briliant presido hh.perio……………………
You mean your presido UNDER 5?