Zambia Association of Manufacturers acting chief executive officer Lewis Chimfwembe said that industrialisation has been behind robust development that countries such as Canada, Germany, Italy, and Japan are enjoying.
Mr Chimfwembe said the key to poverty eradication, high unemployment rates and overdependence on exports of primary products that underdeveloped nations are facing lies in scaling up of the industrialisation agenda.
“Zambia has abundant raw materials, favourable climatic conditions and abundant labour force, yet the country continues to suffer from high poverty and unemployment rates, and overdependence on exports of primary products,” Mr Chimfwembe said in an interview.
He said to create employment, add value to raw materials and diversify the export basket, it is important for Zambia to fast-track her industrialisation drive.
Mr Chimfwembe said industrialisation creates new markets and linkages, promoting supporting industries which will in turn contribute to Zambia’s economic growth.
He said industrialisation is the growth and diversification of the manufacturing sector, and as the sector [manufacturing] grows, the variation of products also increases with demand for new products.
Mr Chimfwembe said this creates a market for new commodities and emergence of supporting industries such as primary and tertiary industry.
He said when industrialisation is in full swing, it creates a demand for specialised skills and increased labour demand which can be addressed through emerging industries that are a result of growth in the manufacturing sector.
“Industrialisation leads to increased exports, self-reliance and growth of foreign reserves, and as the manufacturing sector grows and new and advanced products emerge, the range of products a country exports widens, leading to more foreign exchange earnings, triggering appreciation of the local currency.
Mr. Lewis Chifwembwe is another dreamer like the CEO/chairman of Zambia Industrialization. It is impossible for Zambia to be Industrialized, Zambia is going in a wrong direction. Many houses go without water for 2 to 7 days. The Post office takes more than 3 months to deliver parcels from abroad, Workers not being paid on time esp. by the government, look at a performance of ZAMTEL, Zambia Railways, Post Offices, NCZ. If the state companies are not doing well, even those industries to be introduced will end up performing badly. Government should wake up and put those industries which are not doing well in order before proceeding with Industrialization.
the say dreams are free…. how do not see how a country which has no public toilets can accelerate industrialization.
I have heard about that a thousand + times now. It like blowing and aimless whistle. You can’t even set MFZones running; what the heck are talking about? You can’t even setup important key basic support infrastructure like sufficientand reliable Power Generating infrastructure, Telecoms backbone, Rail and Road Networks and Healthy facilities. How much have you invested in Technology ai ?
You can’t industrialize, if you can’t get your basics right.
Since Industrialization and Energy work hand in hand- I mean If your have energy, you need brains to industrialize but if you don’t have energy, no matter how smart you are, you will lamentably fail.
Industrialization cannot kick-start in a fully Energy rationing setup like Zambia.
Good to have dreams but these are what we call pipe dreams. Dreams that cant be actualised. We are not going anywhere, I am not being negative but I am being factual. You will industrialise with this power deficit and with our inept leaders? Manage your dreams as we the people are managing the rhetoric.There is too much talking in Zambia, just too much rhetoric, watch ZNBC news if you are in doubt and see the rhetoric
These are dreamers. Look at Lumumba road. How can Zambia industrialise. Beer is not industrialisation. Look at Rwanda now producing laptops which Lungu will start ordering for Zambia. Where is the promised national airline? Keep dreaming of industrialisation while Rwanda, Kenya, Tanzania and Ethiopia industrialise for Zambian consumption.
beverage producers such as coca cola, Heineken are part or manufacturing industry. Industrialization comes in many forms. We can buy laptops from Ethiopia and in return sell them then food products
If government won’t encourage industrial growth 10years from now we will be still stagnant economically
Companies like trade kings in the 1990s were considered as pipe dreamers now are market giants, they create employment, tax’s and exports. industries will always emerge bringing economic growth, whether the government will encourage it or not . public toilets or water in houses is no way related to industrialization.