Zambia

country brief

Country Context &
Overview.

Zambia is a politically stable land-locked country in Southern Africa. Its economy has been dominated for generations by copper exports. Non-value-added mining accounts for 77% of exports, which are heavily influenced by volatile global commodity prices. Zambia needs to diversify its economy and to add value to its commodity exports. It is for this reason that the Government of the Republic of Zambia, through its 7th National Development Plan (7NDP), 2017-2021, has committed to creating a diversified and resilient economy for sustained growth and socio-economic transformation driven, among others, by agriculture. Other key sectors of the economy are tourism and manufacturing. The country has a high urban population owing to the location of its major cities along the line of rail and near large-scale copper mines. Although the country recorded steady economic growth during the period 1990-2015, poverty remains the greatest challenge to national development.

The Zambian Government is making concerted efforts to ease its debt burden through raising internal revenue, both from domestic resources and international trade.

As a landlocked country, Zambia’s imports and exports must traverse several borders and countries enroute to seaports. The main seaports that the country uses for its imports and exports include the Port of Dar-es-Salaam in Tanzania and Durban Port in South Africa. These routes are subject to multiple delays and non-tariff barriers (NTBs).

Zambia is a member of two major regional economic communities (RECs), the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) and Southern African Development Community (SADC). The plans of the Government of Zambia (GRZ) are to increase trade with neighbours through reduced trade tariffs and better trade facilitation. However, the country’s membership in more than one regional economic community presents challenges of administering different trade regimes, rules and standards. The Zambian private sector is constrained as it attempts to comply with the different sets of trade rules or standards regimes.

The 7^th National Development Plan 2017–2021 proposes several structural reforms aimed at restoring its economic growth path. One essential part of these reforms is fostering private sector-led development. The plan proposes measures to improve the business environment making the country a prime destination for investment and wealth creation. GRZ proposes specific trade development programmes to improve access to domestic, regional and global markets for exports.

These include:

Development of domestic transport infrastructure;
Transport corridor development;
Efficient border management;
Establishment of OSBPs; and
Enhancing legal and policy frameworks.

Innovation in TMA Strategy 2

TMA Zambia Programme purposes to support the country to transform from a producer and exporter of primary products into a net exporter of value-added goods driven by modernised agriculture (with a focus on value addition), tourism and manufacturing. The trade and export focus show that Zambia’s national trade priorities include:

Enhancing Policy and Regulatory Environment: Creation of an enabling policy environment that supports and sustains trade and export development;

Product development: Developing new products and improving existing ones;

Trade Support Network: Building capacity and enhancing the trade support network to ensure it responds to trade requirements;

Market Penetration and Development: Securing of markets and supporting key identified products and services in these markets; and

Trade Facilitation: Addressing trade facilitation-related constraints to improve the flow of goods and services.

TMA will adopt Zambia’s national priorities and anchor them same within the organisation project clusters of transport, logistics, trade facilitation, customs & tax, standards and NTBs. It will catalyse structural and policy changes to propel Zambia in achieving desired development outcomes, reduce poverty, create jobs, and make Zambia a prosperous middle-income country by 2030.

TMA will adopt Zambia’s national priorities and anchor them within the organisation project clusters of transport, logistics, trade facilitation, customs & tax, standards and NTBs. It will catalyse structural and policy changes to propel Zambia in achieving desired development outcomes, reduce poverty, create jobs, and make Zambia a prosperous middle-income country by 2030.

Programme Implementation.

Implementation will be in two phases.

Phase I:

Construction and operationalisation of the Nakonde OSBP, to complement our existing $7m investment in Tunduma on the Zambia-Tanzania border. This will include: upgrading the physical infrastructure and installation of IBM systems to enhance efficient clearance of cargo on the Zambian side

Pilot a women cross border traders programme.

Implementation of Safe Trade programme to mitigate impact on trade due to Covid-19 pandemic. Fundraising for longer-term funding for Phase II

Phase II

Target Kasumbalesa and Mwami/Mchinji OSBPs amongst others that AfDB has requested for TMA’s partnership

Develop cross border markets, cold storage facilities, specialised inland terminals and container depots.

Enhanced trade and customs automation, standards & SPS, NTBs, logistics and export capability interventions.

Mainstream public-private sector dialogue (PPD) for trade and investment throughout TMA’s project clusters.

Strategy 2 Implementation in Zambia

Program Component

Improved efficiency and capacity of transport and logistics networks
Improved and more transparent trade processes and systems
Reduced non-tariff barriers

OUTCOME 1: REDUCING BARRIERS TO TRADE

Improved efficiency and capacity of transport and logistics networks

Streamline smooth flow of traffic across Tunduma/ Nakonde border and potentially other important borders	Improved border infrastructure- verification sheds, access roads and parking yards
Increase logistics efficiency	Development of a logistics hubs to enhance efficient cargo distribution in Zambia.
Develop a Zambia National Logistics Platform	Efficient trade logistics services

Improved and more transparent trade processes and systems

Upgrade of customs management system	Optimisation of Asycuda system modules for efficient customs processes
Automation of Trade Processes	Implementation of electronic cargo tracking system

Reduced non-tariff barriers

Compliance with WTO TFA	Training National Trade Facilitation Committee (NTFC) on TFA measures. Implementation customs-related trade facilitation initiatives under the WTO TFA.
Compliance with WTO TFA	Training National Trade Facilitation Committee (NTFC) on TFA measures; Implementation customs-related trade facilitation initiatives under the WTO TFA; Implementation of the Authorised Economic Operator (AEO) scheme;