Commerce Minister, Robert Sichinga says government has set benchmarks in its 2011-2015 strategic plan that will help promote and enhance the value addition concept on all local products.
Addressing over 100 Chinsali based small and medium scale business community in Chinsali yesterday, the minister said government has planned for the establishment of Industrial clusters where Identified agricultural and other natural products will be processed to finished goods and ready markets provided.
The minister encouraged people in the area to become full time paid members of industrial cluster areas in order for them to reap the benefits of doing business with products that have their values enhanced.
Accompanying the minister included Citizens Economic Empowerment Commission (CEEC) Director General, Likando Mukumbuta and other ministry officials.
Mr. Sichinga observed that government has observed of late that it has not reaped much benefit for belonging to regional bodies such as the Southern Africa Development Community (SADCC) in its trade, commerce and Industrial engagements with other countries as only four percent of Zambian products found their way to foreign markets in the region.
He noted that the only ideal solution to enhance exports of local materials is to produce in abundance process and package high value products that can easily compete favourably with other imported goods on the market.
He said government is in the process of reviewing conditions in which people can access loans from the CEEC but warned that the PF government will not entertain defaulting on loan repayment because it denied other people from benefiting from the business loans that can help improve peoples’ livelihood.
The minister also disclosed that out of the KR204 million government through the CEEC gave out to individuals and groups as loans last year, over sixty percent has not been repaid to date.
He explained that this was making it difficult for the commission to lend out more money to other needy business people adding that government will remain with no option but to source for extra funds.
Mr.Sichinga further warned that those to access business loans should not in any way feel that they were being paid indirectly for voting the PF into government but should use the funds to improve their business ventures that will benefit them from the establishment of the Industrial Clusters.
Speaking at the same consultative meeting, CEEC Director General; Likando Mukumbuta said last year the youths, physically challenged and women were disadvantaged in accessing business loans as over 92 percent was given out to male folk with only 8 % which went to women and the youths.
Mr.Mukumbuta explained that the commission has deliberately decided to target the marginalized population of the rural areas with 90% of the funding to be given out as loans among the women, physically challenged and the youths.
He said the CEEC will premise its operations on four mandates of giving out business loans, engage business mentors to upcoming applicants, recommend for preferential procurement treatment and reservation schemes in which certain business will be purely spared for indigenous Zambians.
ZANIS
Sichinga pleasee! For how long are you going to be speaking about this sh!t about so called clusters? What the heck have you done on the ground? Nothing!
The interesting thing here is that the Govt have atleast mentioned having a strategic plan which I would be very interested to see. Not to redicule it but to monitor on deliverance. If it include benchmarks, even better. Now the question is, where do we get copies of the same?
Iwe talk is cheap
I suppose mode of engagement need to be refined. We need people to partner with experienced entrepreneurs such that loans are given to specific vulnerable groups to invest in viable ventures as opposed to sentimental groups with no capacity to handle huge amounts of cash: we need to work on things like garbage disposal linked to recycling, local sanitation and landscaping driven by local communities among other ventures that could improve the environment we live in. For instance, the idea to do roads with Pavers can be driven by such small scale group driven companies located in various districts and contracted by the government.
@2, I agree with you entirely. Matter of fact it will also be interesting to see how Mukumbuta monitors those loans to the so-called marginalized when there is such a dismal rate of repayment of loans given out. Also of interest is the loan repayment period; are they expected to be paid back within 12 months?
#1, SICHINGA HAS TO TALK ABOUT IT EVERYDAY FOR PEOPLE LIKE YOU TO UNDERSTAND. INDUSTRIAL CLUSTERS ARE A NEW PHENOMENON TO ZAMBIA. IN FACT IT IS NOT A SIMPLE INDUSTRIAL CONCEPT OR APPROACH. IT IS COMPLEX AND SOPHISTICATED IT NEEDS BEING TALKED ABOUT EVERYDAY TO REMIND AND EDUCATE PEOPLE ABOUT IT. IF YOU ARE TIRED OF IT- JUST DON’T READ ABOUT IT. BUT DON’T PRESUME OTHERS ARE TIRED, TOO.
Talk is lousy. We need to see action. He has been talking about industrial clusters from the first week he became Minister. I am interested in what he has been able to do on the ground. Endless talk is for cadres like you! My advise to you is to remove that big head of yours from where you lodged it ….in the nether regions of your backside!
Addressing over 100 Chinsali based small and medium scale business community in Chinsal………Why not from Lusaka the capital
There is nothing wrong with the industrial clusters, and there is nothing so complex about the concept. What we need are people who will move Zambia from “Potential”, “Concepts” “natural endowment”, “Potentially rich” “talk about Talks”, and all the buzz words used by every Jim and Jack to activity on the ground and implementation of these ideas. If you cannot pay primary producers on time, if you cannot give them inputs on time, how are you going to implement industrial clusters?. Please put your house in order before you give more of Talks about talks. As a mater of fact am not sure if the in puts for this farming season have been delivered???
the idea of lending money to empower citzens is good, but what I fail to understand is the failure to repay the loans, I just can’t believe people can be allowed to borrow money and just not pay! this is just an excuse by those managing these funds to steal, they must have books to show who borrowed and who has not paid! and there must be punitive measures for non payment! in some countries you cannot access such funds without attending a short government sponsored course on entreuprenureship. they do this to ensure that money is given to people who have an idea about running a business, they want you to succeed in your business so that you are able to pay back.
To begin with the headline s misleading. The benchmarks being referred to relate to commerce and industry but the headline is sweeping.
Secondly we have heard this talk of economic clusters before. What we want to hear now is progress made.
Thirdly I always have a problem with our governments making important pronouncements such as a Strategic Plan Sichinga is talking about at such fora and then what follows is dead silence on the matter. Why not just develop the plan, make it public, get the desired input, finalise it and implement it without so much political rhetoric?
Mr Sichinga has been in Public life for how long? What has he achieved for Zambia? Sichinga like President Chiluba like quite many zambian leaders, nice sounding, good long english like this but no results on the ground. The man was regected in his own village when he tried to run as MP under UPND and so did Kafue residents. That is why we can get any new results we have the same chaps who are not efficient recycled chaps running inportant departments of our public life, same chaps = same results. Change ba Zambia. Mwalimbikila ati AFCON nanga employment and poverty , bwe!