By CHIMANGENI BANDA –

in Port Louis, Mauritius
COMMERCE, Trade and Industry Minister Margaret Mwanakatwe has said that Zambia has a lot to learn from Mauritius’ veritable economic diversification programme.
Ms Mwanakatwe said that Mauritius had done a splendid job in diversifying its economy, which is predominantly sugar production, to a multi-faceted economy.
The minister said that Mauritius’ economic turn-around was largely attributed to strong attraction of investments and utilisation of economic processing zones.
She said this when she called on her Mauritius counterpart, Ashit Kumar Gungah in Port Louis yesterday.
Ms Mwanakatwe said Zambia wanted to learn best international practices and experiences from Mauritius’ thriving economy, which was anchored on a strong manufacturing base of textile industries.
The minister said Zambia’s textile industry had collapsed but the Government was determined to revive the sector so that it could play a significant role in the country’s development by creating employment for Zambians.
Ms Mwanakatwe said the Government was making necessary efforts to move away from Zambia’s dependency on copper by promoting value-addition and diversification into agriculture, manufacturing and tourism.
Mauritius Commerce Minister Mr Gungah said diversification and zoning specific areas was crucial in developing the economy.
Mr Gungah said there was need for Zambia and Mauritius to maximise trade benefits from existing bilateral relations.
He assured Ms Mwanakatwe that he would lead a delegation to Zambia to sign a Memorandum of Understanding and explore business opportunities in the manufacturing sector.