By AUSTIN KALUBA –
WE hail President Edgar Lungu’s call for a stop to import fish since Zambians are capable of producing sufficient stocks for home consumption and export.
In economics this is called Protectionism and entails restraining trade between states through methods such as tariffs on imported goods, restrictive quotas, and a variety of other government regulations designed to allow fair competition between imports and goods and services produced domestically.
However, there is need to extend the banning to other products in order to promote local industries.
There should be zero-tolerance for importing goods that can be produced locally.
Zambia imports anything; from toothpicks to fruits despite having capacity to produce these things domestically.
This dependence on foreign products and services is a colonial syndrome that must be stopped if we are to uphold our sovereignty.
It is sad and shameful to note that the colonisation of many African countries by the United Kingdom in the late 1890s and early 1900s resulted in the redistribution of wealth in favour of expatriate classes of the colonised societies whilst marginalising indigenous people.
However, upon attaining political independence, most former British colonies on the continent did not address this wealth imbalance as the new governments feared being seen as embarking on retribution missions, which would result in the flight of capital needed for economic recovery.
Zambia should emulate countries like Botswana and Zimbabwe which have embarked on affirmative action programmes, commonly known as economic empowerment policies, to address the imbalances.
The fish importation ban should be a good beginning point for Zambia to promote local industries that can be controlled by Zambians.
Early this year, President Lungu sounded a clarion call when he challenged those charged with the responsibility of procuring services and contracts to get value for money to avoid turning Zambia into a dumping ground for substandard products.
As things stand, Zambia has continued being a dumping ground for substandard finished products which should prompt citizens to start owning the production process from extraction to actual manufacturing.
From time to time, the Zambia Institute of Marketing (ZIM) has called on Zambians to start focusing on the manufacturing sector other than the extractive industries to avoid being exploited.
ZIM president Evans Muhanga was recently quoted in the press saying Zambia risked remaining a dumping ground for sub-standard finished goods for a long time to come if it did not address the matter.
In the near future, we want to see a number of products labeled with ‘made in Zambia.’