Celtel Zambia Plc, raised 665.6 Billion Kwacha ($205 million) on Lusaka Stock Exchange (LuSE) in the Zambia’s biggest initial public offering )IPO). The company shares gained 13 percent in its Lusaka trading debut.

Celtel Zambia, which sold 1.04 billion shares, or 20 percent of its stock, for 640 kwacha each, climbed 85 kwacha to close at 725 kwacha, according to Lusaka Stock Exchange data.

Celtel Zambia, the southern African nation’s biggest mobile- phone company and a unit of Kuwait-based Zain, attracted applications for more than twice the number of shares offered.

“I expected the share price to rise because of the high demand in the sale”, Moses Musonda, a 27 year-old vegetable seller in Lusaka who bought 10 shares in the IPO, said in an interview in the capital today. He said he plans to increase his shareholding further.

The company has 78 percent of the country’s mobile-phone market and plans to increase its subscribers to 2.7 million this year from 1.9 million customers in 2007, according to its pre- listing statement.

Celtel Zambia Managing Director David Venn said Celtel had offered 20 percent of its 5.2 billion shares in issue to the public. The IPO was 150 percent oversubscribed by foreign institutional investors and the Zambian public.

Venn said that Celtel International BV would now hold 78.9 percent in Celtel Zambia, with the World Bank’s finance arm — the International Finance Corporation (IFC) — holding 1.1 percent.

Lusaka City Council says Government should consider giving the local authority grants that would enable it implement developmental projects in Lusaka’s peri-urban areas.

In an interview with ZANIS in Lusaka, Council Public Relations Manager Chanda Makanta said the Council makes about K20 million per month of ground rates from peri-ban areas out of which 35 percent is ploughed back into the same communities for projects like schools, health centres and other infrastructure developments.

Ms Mankata said the ground rates have not been revised over the years, saying people in peri-urban areas were still paying K10,000 bemoaning its inadequacy to meet the Council’s requirements to develop new structures.

She said there was need to improve people’s lives in peri-urban areas because of the huge population demand for improved services.

She observed that the ward development funds once properly used could help improve services among them the fight against contagious diseases.

Ms Makanta expressed regret that many times funds released by the Council were not used for the intended purposes adding that wrong people managed the funds hence rendering garbage collection difficult.

The Council PR Manager noted that the Council had received complaints George compound, Mtendere and Ngombe residents over the misuse of Ward Development funds.

Ms Makanta underscored the Council’s obligation to improve people’s lives through Ward Developments funds adding that these funds were not for the benefit of individuals but communities.

Meanwhile, Ms Makanta has warned against construction of structures in the city without Council’s approval.

She observed that illegal structures had mushroomed and were substandard making Lusaka city an eyesore.

Ms Makanta said the Council would not hesitate to demolish such structures.

Government says Zambia has not refused to host Zimbabwean victims of xenophobic attacks in South Africa but that it needed to be consulted and that adequate resources should be available to host more refugees.

Foreign Affairs Minister Kabinga Pande who is also Kasempa Member of Parliament described hosting of refugees as an expensive venture which required a lot of resources.

Mr. Pande explained that Zambia has hosted too many refugees than any other country in the region.

He explained that though Zambia has a responsibility under the United Nations to host refugees it also has the onus to look after them well.

Mr. Pande was answering a question from Rogers Chayanga in Mufumbwe today who wanted to know why the Zambian Government was refusing to host the Zimbabweans who had been displaced by xenophobic attacks in South Africa.

Meanwhile, Mr. Pande who is in Mufumbwe to meet Movement for Multi Party Democracy (MMD) party cadres and Civil Servants challenged the people of the district to be committed to fostering development in the area.

He said no outsider would develop Mufumbwe but the local people themselves.

Turning to Civil Servants, Mr. Pande said they should exhibit high professionalism.

Mr. Pande who is also MMD Vice National Chairperson called on the party officials in Mufumbwe to work hand in hand with the Civil Servants in a bid to not only transform Mufumbwe but Zambia as a whole.

He urged councillors to be proactive on issues that affect people in their area and not to wait for ministers to tell them what to do.

And speaking earlier, Mufumbwe District Commissioner, Robert Muyutu said despite the growing population in the district and economic investment inflows in Mufumbwe, the district has no Bank.

The Mufumbwe District Commissioner however thanked Government for tarring the Kasempa-Mufumbwe road which he said will boost economic investments in the area.

And in a vote of thanks, a resident George Kapendula called upon government to connect Mufumbwe to the national electricity grid.

Mr. Kapendula said if this is not possible, Government should provide the District with new electricity generating machines as the old ones have outlived their life span

Mr. Pande is on a tour of his constituency to check on developmental activities embarked on by Government and by cooperating partners.

Barclays Bank Zambia has admitted that it made a biggest mistake in closing rural branches in the country some five years ago.

Bank Managing Director Zafar Masud said the pulling out of the bank from rural areas was due to Zambia’s economic down turn during that time.

He said this situation was not conducive for the continued existence of the bank in remote areas at that time.

Mr Masud reiterated that the bank has strategically positioned its self to grow through capturing all the sectors of the economy.

Mr. Masud was speaking at the Euro Money workshop hosted by Barclays Bank under the theme ‘Sustainable Economic Growth through Microfinance and Small and Medium Enterprise (SME)’.

The Workshop was held on the sidelines of the Money Euro conference that opened in Lusaka , Zambia’s capital Tuesday morning. The participants have been drawn from the local business community and international investors.

He stated that financing for the SMES was available but pointed out that communication was lacking between the banks and the SMES on products that are on offer.

Speaking at the same function, Bank Head of SMEs Regina Mulenga said the bank in collaboration with other corporation partners has devised a mechanism, of risk sharing of finance.

She cited the United States Agency for International Development (USAID)as one of the strategic partners with whom the bank has entered into partnership.

She added other partners are also providing the technical support to SMEs to equip them with management skills to run their businesses.

And Finance and National Planning Deputy Minister Jonas Shakafuswa said Government has made strides in putting financing on course for national development.

He stated that Government’s decision to reduce domestic borrowing has created an opportunity for the financial sector to take advantage of other opportunities for investing their resources.

Earlier, Zambia Chamber of Small and Medium Business Association (ZCSMBA) Executive Director Maxwell Sichula complained that lack of access to financial services is a major hindrance for the growth of the small scale enterprise.

He stated that although the financial services do proclaim to offer SMEs service, the products on offer are beyond the reach of the SMEs.

And Bank of Zambia Deputy Government Danny Kalyalya stated that the mining sector is one sector that can give a boost to move the economy forward both in the short and medium terms.

Dr. Kalyalya said the sector offers the country both the competitive and comparative advantage hence the need to use the proceeds for other developmental programmes.

He was speaking at the Bank of Zambia workshop dubbed Macro economic Stability and Investment in Zambia.

He said the reduction in the inflation rates that the country experienced in the recent past has helped in facilitating enhanced investment.

He however pointed out that the escalating world food prices and soaring oil prices was a major threat to inflation.

ZANIS/ENDS/MK/CLM

Finance and National Planning Minister, Ngandu Magande, says there is need for Zambians to make adjustment on the consumption of oil so as to reduce the impact of soaring prices of the commodity on the Zambian economy.

Mr. Magande observed that reduction on consumption of the commodity would significantly reduce its impact on the economy.

He stated that it is imperative that Zambians make adjustments on the usage of the commodity as citizens in other countries have done.

He stated that the country would be affected by the soaring oil prices on the international market because it imports most of the crude oil.

Oil prices on the international market are reported to have reached the mark of $130 per barrel.

The minister was speaking during a press briefing on the sidelines of the two day Euro Market conference that has attracted participation from local business community and international investors.

And Mr. Magande said government would be open to discussion with mining companies that are having problems with the newly introduced mining tax regime.

He ruled out complaints by some mining companies that were not fully informed about the new taxation method being used to tax them on their proceeds.

The minister reiterated that the new measures are aimed at making both Zambians and the mining companies gain from their investments.

At the same function Commerce, Trade and Industry Minister, Felix Mutati, stated that trade has not been affected despite of the Xenophobia attacks in South Africa and political instability in the neighboring Zimbabwe.

He stressed that Zimbabwe has continued to be a major corridor for most of Zambia’ imports and exports to South Africa which is a major trading partner in the Southern Africa region