President Hakainde Hichilema, in his inaugural speech at the ongoing mining indaba in Cape Town re-echoed a line which he first used a fortnight ago when Zambia and the Democratic Republic of Congo signed economic mineral protocols, the need for fairly priced capital in the mining faculty.
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Speaking at the mining indaba themed ‘Evolution of African Mining: Investing in the Energy Transition, ESG and Economies,’ Hichilema said, “We will work with everyone, the technology people, financial partners the capital providers, but only if your capital is fairly priced because Africa is paying too much for capital. It is now time to lower the cost of capital.”
Unleashing his governments plans for the mining faculty, Hichilema positioned Zambia as ready for business and a key player in the global copper industry that was strategic in the global decarbonization and green agenda. The Southern African leader has over the last 8 months demonstrated the zest to rekindle fading momentum in the mining faculty through an array of initiatives such as adjustments in mining tax regime to rekindle waning exploration propensity and resolution of mining disputes that have cost the red metal producer its top slot in Africa.
“Just last month we signed a memorandum with the Democratic Republic of Congo to facilitate the development of value chains in the electric battery and clean energy sector,” he said.
Hichilema dubbed as Zambia’s Chief Investment Officer is determined to change the narrative that Africa is a source of raw materials to being a leading player in the electric cars and key green innovations.
Zambia will seek to scale higher its copper, cobalt and nickel production, metals key in the green energy transition while exploration of tin, lithium, graphite, rare earth minerals remain priority for the energy transition.
The Kwacha Arbitrageur
