SICHINGA

THE Patriotic Front (PF) Government has achieved its campaign promises of job creation and lowering of taxes.
Commerce Trade and Industry Minister Robert Sichinga said during a Professional Insurance-sponsored cocktail at Mukuba Hotel that Government through its policies and innovations, had achieved job creation and had reduced taxes.
This, he said, had achieved the ‘more money in your pocket’ slogan.
“No economy can survive if its citizens have no resources to spend. With job creation and reducing taxes, people have resources to invest in business,”  Mr Sichinga said.
He said lower taxes helped businesses and foreign investors in the country to creat jobs.
Earlier, during a minister’s open forum, Commerce, Trade and Industry Deputy Minister, Miles Sampa said Government would continue supporting trade fairs because they promoted domestic and regional trade which would in turn lead to the creation of jobs.
Mr Sampa said in a speech read for him by the ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Siazongo Siakalenge at a Professional Insurance-sponsored event that Government supported platforms like trade fairs because they increased opportunities for private investment and trade.
This, he said, resulted in increased domestic, regional and global trade which would in turn lead to more jobs being created.
Mr Sampa said promoting trade through fairs would enable Zambia improve its competitiveness through targeted business environment reforms.
He said Government had embarked on licensing reforms and labour law reforms which promoted an enabling environment for doing business in Zambia.
At the same forum, Zambia Chambers of Commerce and Industry (ZACCI) president, Geoffrey Sakulanda said Zambians needed to engage relevant bodies like ZACCI to find sustainable ways of doing business.
Mr Sakulanda said Zambians should also be ingenious in the way they came up with business ideas to run their businesses effectively and cheaply.
He said ZACCI had come up with the Private Sector Alliance to promote dialogue between public companies and private investors.
Mr Sakulanda said there were a number of issues that needed to be tabled between the public sector and the private sector for both parties to run profitably.
“For example, while the private sector wants to invest in electricity generation, they want the tariffs to be hiked because they will not make returns on the current tariffs.
“On the other hand, the manufacturing sector is complaining againstthe current tariffs saying they are high. So there is need for dialogue to see the way forward,” he said.