By MOFFAT CHAZINGWA  and MILDRED KATONGO –
PRESIDENT Edgar Lungu has commissioned the US$45.5 million Mukuba Mall in Kitwe with a directive to all supermarkets operating in the country to stock Zambian-grown produce and other local products on their shelves.
President Lungu said there is no reason why Zambian-grown produce and products such as tomatoes and potatoes should not be given sufficient shelf space in supermarket chains that benefit extensively
from Government’s investment incentives.

• RESIDENTS throng the Mukuba Mall in Kitwe that was commissioned yesterday by President Edgar Lungu. Inset, President Lungu feels one of the exercise bicycles during the official opening of the mall yesterday. Pictures by MOFFAT CHAZINGWA and SALIM HENRY/State House

The President said this in Kitwe yesterday when he commissioned the mall, situated at the former zoo in Parklands. The mall has come to life after the investment by Heriot Properties Investment.
“I will personally be making surprise visits to supermarkets and similar retail outlets to check on their compliance to this directive,” Mr Lungu said.
He commended Heriot Properties Investment for taking advantage of the good investment climate and for  having the confidence in the local economy .
The President, who joking said, after so many promises of development of a shopping mall in Kitwe to the residents, he was happy that Heriot Properties Investment had finally delivered on their promise.
“From 1991, people have been promising  that they will build a shopping mall, from 2002 they have been promising, from 2005 they have been promising and finally it is here,” Mr Lungu said amid cheers by the gathering.
It was an established fact that such commercial developments give sound confidence to investors in the strength and growth of the Zambian economy and is an assurance that investing in the country continues to make good business sense.
Mr Lungu, however, noted with concern the minimal and decreasing representation or presence of Zambian businesses in the high end retail spaces and shopping malls.
This development, he said, could be a result of rental pricing structures that may border on prohibitive trade practices and work against local tenancy.
To this effect, he encouraged all mall developers and operators to work with the Ministry of Commerce, Trade and Industry to develop deliberate and more inclusive rental pricing structures that encourage
local tenancy in the malls.
Mr Lungu said Government remained committed to supporting the growth of local industry and local micro and small to medium enterprises.
“I would like to urge all commercial developers to partner with my Government in actualising this policy in the high-end retail industry and commercial spaces,” Mr Lungu said.
Government through the Ministry of Commerce, Trade and Industry and the Citizens Economic Empowerment Commission is currently working on the policy that will protect and support the growth of local investment in all sectors of the economy for both local and foreign entrepreneurs.
Mr Lungu said Government is doing everything possible to provide an enabling environment for the local private sector to thrive.
It is therefore up to the local and international private sector to research and participate fully in the available opportunities across all the sectors of the economy.
The president said the opening of the Mukuba Mall complimented Government’s policy of encouraging increased private sector investment, job creation and enhancing economic activity in the local towns and cities.
He was pleased that the Mukuba and Kafubu Mall Group are currently developing two more shopping malls in Solwezi and Lusaka respectively.
“Apart from the investment and economic activity anticipated in these developments, there are over 1,000 jobs that have been created during the construction phase of the shopping malls,” he said. Mr Lungu said the development of retail spaces, including shopping malls in a country such as Zambia, opens up opportunities for growth of the local suppliers and entrepreneurs in other sectors.
Mukuba Mall chief executive officer Steve Herrings thanked Zambia Development Agency  for having supported their investment. Mr Herrings said Kitwe had been in need of a large mall for a long time and as such, he is pleased that his company managed to deliver the Mukuba Mall project in record 18 months period.