The government has said that it is looking for US$100 million to recapitalize the ailing Mulungushi Textiles in Kabwe District.
Minister of Defence, Ambrose Lufuma said government has faced problems in revamping the Zambia China Mulungushi Textiles factory due to compelling challenges.
Addressing Journalists in Chongwe after the handover of three China Aided Milling plants, Mr Lufuma said the biggest challenge the UPND Administration has faced in revamping Mulungushi Textiles has been the debt stock.
“You need a lot of money to recapitalize, and so because we had a heavy debt stock, we couldn’t go in and borrow” said Mr Lufuma.
The Defence Minister explained that government wanted to borrow funds from China to recapitalize the factory but had to wait until the debt restructuring agreement was agreed with concerned stakeholders.
Mr Lufuma said following the debt restructuring agreement with China, government is now ready to borrow from China to inject capital into the Mulungushi textiles.
The Defence Minister said current machinery at the factory has been assessed and that additional machinery has been identified and will be procured to ensure that the factory starts operating.
“What is remaining is to get that money, buy the machinery and we are ready to go” said Mr Lufuma.
He said cotton is ready to be supplied to the factory following government’s decision to finance cotton out grower schemes to provide raw materials to Mulungushi Textiles.
Mr Lufuma said the UPND administration is working round the clock to ensure that it sticks to its campaign promises given to the people of Kabwe that the Mulungushi Textiles would be recapitalized so that the facility starts producing and creates employment for the locals.
$100 million! You can buy TEN new textile factories for that! By the way, weren’t the Chinese supposed to have fixed all those machines? I remember Edgar China Lungu visiting the place with the Chinese ambassador only a year ago!
Zambians don’t learn from history. Zambians further don’t learn from books.
Prior to Dambisa Moyo’s Dead aid and her subsequent books as well as books by a regular contributor to Lsk Times Mwansa Prosper Sr, it has been established that the Chinese imports of cheap clothes has made Mulungushi Textiles futile.
As long as the option exists for cheaper clothes, products from Mulungushi will not sale and the company cannot be sustained by supplying to the army or hospitals only.
Using knowledge, and learning from Bangladesh, we should use the company simply to process cotton into material and export the same.
“Insanity is doing the same thing and expecting different results”
Vaas, Far Cry 3 Video Game.
This is just silly thinking ….you have not explained what went wrong in the past with this Textile company which have even included China in name. You seriously think the Chinks will lend you $100m so you can compete with their industries plus how did you come up with a round figure of $100m.
I thought hh was rich and only became president to serve. So why doesn’t he cover this cost out of his pocket? After all his money belongs to us from his privatisation theft
Chiza Chirwa – If Mulungushi had the right equipment to manufacture quality defence and police uniforms it would sustained by that ..the last defence contract to supply miltary uniforms was awarded to a Bangladeshi firm under suspicious circumstances and it was worth $60 million. You dont need $100 million to recapitilize this firm its all inflated maybe done by the Chinese themselves to kill prospect of it opening. The only way this company will be back competing is when we put in place policies that promote local production eliminate cheap imports. This is why we can not even print our own ballot papers we go to Dubai every 5 years observing but never just take note of the manufacturer of the machines call them up and buy them. Get a Factory manager from abroad to run it and train…
and train or send locals abroad to learn how the machinery works and how to repair them,
@Tarino, Mulungushi should supply the army, zaf, ZNS and perhaps hospitals with gowns and nurse uniforms.
It is indeed a shame that we continue to outsource these services. I am aware there is a company that already manufactures boots for our men in uniform.
We do need to reform our procurement process. However, Mulungushi keeps failing since 1991 because of imports of clothes. Chinese garments as well as second hand clothes are cheaper and readily available, Mulungushi cannot reasonably be expected to cover the fashion needs of the country. Revamp it, but take lessons from history.
Doing things arbitrarily will result in failed projects again.
SELL IT OFF IN SECTIONS
THAT SETUP WILL NEVER EVER BE VIABLE
SMALL MANUFACTURING ENTERPRISES CAN BE LET IN THERE AND RENTAL COLLECTED
Minister of Defence, ??? WHAT HAS HE GOT TO DO WITH IT ANYWAY ??
SEEKING ATTENTION ??
WHILST HIS ARMY IS IN TATTERS
WHILST HIS ARMY IS IN TATTERS PERHAPS BETTER PUT
DISARRAY
tikki – THis is one manufacturing plant that its like saying sell off a car plant in section it just brings in more confusion plus the location is of no significance to the SME, they can get their cotton delivered to them anywhere even in Lusaka.
Chiza Chirwa – THe problem will have with us is that we dont want to invest in a bit of research development…I mean what is so difficult about sending someone or contacting Zambian embassies to obtain just one sample of miltary and police uniforms from all over the world, these are sold in Excess military stores online and reverse-engineer nothing wrong with that then get the necessary machinery to do it at lower cost. I am telling you that Textile would be getting orders from our neighbouring countries for defence clothing….the govt can even go one step further and upgrade all nurses uniforms do away with the colonial sexist white dresses and introduce the trousers & shirt. Award the contract to Mulungushi.
*Chiza Chirwa – The problem we have with us
Turkey quickly scaled up its textile plants during the pandemic and had 100 million worth of orders in supplying masks and medical protective clothing when China was lockdown…next 10 years food supply will face the same issue we as country need to position ourselves in agriculture.
Of course a local textile industry can survive………..
How many millions was spent on campsin materials in the 2021 elections…..???
All work cloths , school uniforms can be made there………..
The developt world has found out despite cheaper cloths made in China, a local textile industry is a must and they are being revamped……….
Even if the industry does not run at a profit as long as it breaks even and provides employment to increase the tax base……..
@Tarino, I am inclined to agree with your viewpoint. But alas, the problem continues to be doing things because that’s how they were done historically. We should use information in our decision making, let the government provide clear guidelines and explain how our concerns will be handled.
@Spaka AKA Akaps AKA Tarino Orange AKA that other guy… we cannot ask the company to manufacture uniforms, most schools are supplied by local tailors, we shouldn’t take away that business from them.
The know-it-all here only awaits GRZ to make a move and then they come out in numbers to critisize.Mulungushi and Indeni are two GRZ projects that you imbeciles cant comment on as you damnly watched your own Lungu rape the two institutions to skelekon shape. He even was fooling you every election time to sell we are reopeing it we are reopening it and u all well know the results. As for Indeni, Lungu & PF stationed their own cadres there as oil suppliers using the Indeni license yet the actual Indeni was non existent,as cadres were the ones in charge of oil procurement. Indeni died 7yrs ago & no one new until an evaluation was done by the new GRZ.
All textile industries in zambia are dead and no amount of recapitalization can revive them. The cost of production is just too high due to high zesco and heavy fuel oil prices and its cheaper just to bring in finished products than manufacturing. Look at kafue textiles , mukuba textiles in ndola, swarp spinning mills in ndola….etc all dead due to the same reasons.
Chiza Chirwa – Spaka and me ain’t the same blogger …please get that right we share the same flag but we are two very differrent bloggers. if you make such allegations you are just opening the door for trolls to hijack the flow of the debate.
Spaka – has raised the issue of uniforms…I mean go to rural areas check pupils get their uniforms from? Its either second-hand clothes especially for secondary schools…there nothing advising all govt schools to ordering uniforms from Mulungushi.
I feel hounered to be mistaken for such an eminent blogger as TO……..
As I said , the developed world now realises that globalisation is a detriment , and are putting to protectionist policies to protect the industries from cheap products from Asia……………
They have learned the bitter way that it is much cheaper to have employment for subsidiesed industries than have unemployment and import goods cheaper
Our leaders need to start thinking outside the box
The amounts which Zambians in the diaspora remit back home is greater than this $100 million annually. This means that if the government taps in this source of funding this amount can be raised effortlessly within one year by re structuring the entity into a public owned company with share units equivalent to $100 million, invite the diaspora community and even local Zambians to buy these shares and there you have it. No need to depend on foreigners to give you loans!
Forget about the textile plant, it’s irrelevant. $100 million could be used to start an agricultural equipment assembly or manufacturing plant.
I thought the PF recapitalized it every election year?