• CHISANGA

By KENNEDY MUPESENI –

THE Zambia Development Agency (ZDA) has invited local and foreign investors to take advantage of the demand for sugar and incentives to invest in the production of the commodity.
ZDA director general Patrick Chisanga said ZDA was seriously engaging investors to develop sugar cane plantations and increase sugar production in the country.
“There is a big local and international market for sugar which investors need to take advantage of. At the recently held investment conference in Lusaka a lot of investors expressed interest to invest in the industry especially in Luapula Province,” Mr Chisanga said.
Mr Chisanga also said the investors should take advantage of the incentives being given to expand sugar production.
He added that ZDA received a number of applications from investors wishing to develop sugar plantations.
Mr Chisanga said in an interview that the feedback ZDA was getting showed that there would be a new wave of investor inflow into the Zambian economy largely due to the peaceful transition and adherence to democratic tenets.
He said investing more in the sector would contribute to export diversification from copper and contribute to industrialisation and job creation especially for the youths.
According to the World Bank 2010 Report, Zambia has continued experiencing tremendous growth in the sugar industry spurred by increased private investments in the sector following market liberalisation.
However, the increased investments have also created a market structure in which a single multinational, Zambia Sugar, is dominant.
Zambia Sugar Plc controls about 90 per cent of the total market share for sugar.
Sugar is one of the most successful non-traditional export crops for Zambia, which accounts for three to four per cent of the national Gross Domestic Product and six per cent of the total national exports in Zambia.