Friday, March 29, 2024

The new Kenneth Kaunda International Conference Centre set to host the AU meeting

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Government says the new Kenneth Kaunda International Conference Centre (KKICC) will be handed over to government on May 16, 2022 in readiness for the upcoming African Union (AU) meeting slated for July this year.

Infrastructure, Housing and Urban Development Minister, Charles Milupi, said the facility is at 99.9 percent completion and only final touches are remaining.

Mr Milupi explained that after the handover of the conference, testing of equipment will commence to ensure that all facilities such as water, ablution blocks among others are working.

Speaking when he inspected the KKICC to check on the progress so far, Mr Milupi said the installation of equipment and landscaping will follow in a bid to promote a green environment around the multi-million facility.

He noted that the first meeting that will take place in the new conference is the African Union (AU) mid-term Coordinating conference earmarked to take place from July 14 to 17, 2022.

“I can confidently say that this facility is ready in every aspect for Zambia to host the conference in July this year looking at the progress so far,” he said.

Mr Milupi further added that the conference which is a gift from China to the tune of $60 million, can accommodate over 2,500 delegates at one sitting.

The Minister also urged the people that will be in charge of looking after the state of the art facility to guard it jealously so as to avoid vandalism and that constant maintenance must be there in order to preserve the centre.

“There is a tendency to build good infrastructure, but lack of maintenance, is a sad state of affair, but with the new dawn administration, the narrative will change,” said Mr Milupi.

“The only way our building such as this one, as well as other infrastructure can last longer is by constantly doing routine maintenance on them, he added.

He said after the AU mid-term Coordinating conference, the facility will continue to host important summits both from SADC and the world at large as the centre will be available to both public and private entities.

The Minister also took the occasion to urge the hospitality industry to up their game to serve the people that will be coming to use the Conference Centre by improving the standard of the hospitality sector.

And Ministry of Infrastructure, Housing and Urban Development Permanent Secretary, Danny Mfune said his Ministry is happy that the conference is completed to the expectation of the Ministry.

He also said plans are underway to expand the roads near the Conference to reduce on congestion at the centre during meetings.

Zambia is this year hosting the AU mid-term Coordinating conference in July, hence the construction of the facility.

17 COMMENTS

  1. PF requested for this from the Chinese government. Yet Milupi and his UPND government cannot even acknowledge this. Without the good relations the PF maintained with the Chinese government, this gift would not have come. Thank you, the People’s Republic of China, and thank you to the PF in government. Ba UPND, acknowledge that the maintenance of good relations with the Chinese earned us this, courtesy of the PF and ECL in government. The Americans or British cannot build us such a facility. They are only good at establishing military offices that enhance their own interests.

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    • The people to acknowledge and thank are the tax payers of China, and not anybody else who wants to get credit. Even if it was another government China was still going to assist, China has assisted Zambia in all the previous governments, so there is absolutely nothing unique with this gesture granted during the PF misrule. Thank you China

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  2. Not a gift from China. Paid with a LOAN from China. To be paid back. Yet another PRESENT from that most incompetent of presidents: that corrupt thieving Edgar China Lungu. So now we have THREE Mulungushis next to each other. One will be used even less than the others. What a waste of money!

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  3. @1: anti corruption keep your mouth shut if you have nothing to say. If I were you I would even thank PF and Edgar for that building.

    It is the first time in Zambian to have a building that is going to accomodate 2500 delegates at the same time. How many times are you going to insult Edgar.

    Your new doom government has no plans to build any infrastructure because viva PF has built the infrastructure already.

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    • Lost soul, lost contracts weeping. The train is moving. He thinks there is infrastructure in Kaputa

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  4. Let us give credit where credit is due. PF may have done a lot of horrible things but when it comes to infrastructure development, they performed wonders and should be praised for that. One thing I like about Bally and his UPND is that they have resolved to improve on what they found unlike in the Chiluba days when everything which had to do with KK had to be done away with . If Chiluba had improved on what he found, Zambia would have been a paradise by now. But as it was, his successor had to start from scratch. hame.

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  5. Zambia dotting the World map – everyday! Atleast breath of air of hearing a piece of good news everyday. I was sick of hearing Cadree, Intecity & Markets everyday during PF.

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  6. #5  kanamaso kakubeka 
    May 5, 2022 At 7:13 pm

    “Let us give credit where credit is due. PF may have done a lot of horrible things but when it comes to infrastructure development, they performed wonders and should be praised for that…..”

    At what cost ????

    They gifted you a $60 million building but they will have extracted $60+ billion by the time you are ready…….. 

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  7. All these people praising PF for supposed infrastructure development…………

    Have no clue about the gravity of the recklessness of PF in spending spending and more spending of money they did not have…………….

    To a point where they failed to pay back and now zambia will be saddled with debt even for your grandchildren………….

    These are the same praise singers telling us investors will come tripping over them selves……..

    Through their reckless thinking , they built an airport to cater for 55 planes landing every day of the week…….now the fees at that airport are too high for anything……

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  8. WITH ZAMBIA IN TATTERS AND PEOPLE LIVING BELOW THE BREAD LINE
    IS THIS REALLY NECESSARY NO WAY
    RECKLESS SPENDING BY PF, HOW OFTEN WILL IT BE USED ? IT WILL NEVER EVER PAY FOR ITSELF OR UTILISED TO ITS FULLEST
    AND CALLING IT KENNETH KAUNDA ? JUST SHOW THE MENTATILTY OF SOME ?
    BIG IS NOT ALWAYS BEST

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  9. Pf and ecls legacy. Now watch the upnd f00ls attempt to take credit for things they didn’t do. Tubwa mwebo!

  10. Recklessness or none, where credit is due let us acknowledge it. After all that is how we will earn ours tomorrow for good service.

  11. The kind of comments are not wealth to Zambian citizens. Let us avoid insulting language and embrace as one but if this continues it will trigger into horrible and disaster results. This is what happened in Rwanda the Hutus and hittis. Take care otherwise u will cry .The current politics are filthy

  12. PF like all human structures made mistakes, commuted herneuos crimes, but also did notably good things. The “new baby” in town must shake off its dippers and start crawling. This is a unitary state that we must all embrace and focus on developing it for the good of everyone. Narrow perso AL battles must not blind us.

  13. IF IT WAS A GIFT, THEN ANYONE IN GOVERNMENT WOULD HAVE GOT OR RECEIVED IT, THEREFORE, THERE IS NOTHING HERE TO THANK PF OR EDGAR CHANGWA. ITS THE CHINESE WHO DESERVE THE “THANK YOU” AND THAT WILL HAPPEN ON May 16, WHEN THE INFRASTRACTURE WILL BE HANDED TO GRZ.
    BA PF, YOU WANT TO BE PARTED ON YOUR BACKS FOR EVERYTHING……FORGET IT !!!!! NINDALAMA ZA BA NYOKO? NINDALAMA ZA BOMA, NINDALAMA ZA BA 18MIL ZAMBIAN PEOPLE.
    SO SHVT THE FVCK OFF ASKING TO BE PARTED ON THE BACKS.

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