By Business Reporter
THE Zambia Development Agency (ZDA) is targeting to attract about US$1 billion foreign direct investment (FDI) into Zambia this year, director general Andrew Chipwende has said.
And Mr Chipwende said the main focus of the Agency in 2010 would be to improve service delivery, especially for micro and small enterprises (MSEs) and pursuing result-oriented investment and export promotion and market research strategies.
According to the latest edition of ZDA Spotlight, a monthly publication, Mr Chipwende said the Agency was confident of recording increased FDI inflows this year in view of the business reforms Zambia was implementing and the economic stability recorded in the last few years.
“Following the FDI trends into Zambia since 2000 and especially after big economies recently came out of the recession, ZDA is confident to achieve the $1 billion FDI target this year,” Mr Chipwende said.
The business reforms, which the country was currently pursuing mainly under the Triangle of Hope initiative, had put the nation on higher leverage compared to neighbouring countries, a situation ZDA aimed to utilise to attract more FDI into Zambia from all over the world.
“Zambia’s economic policies and business reforms helped it attain more than six per cent growth last year amid the economic crisis and maintaining a single digit inflation of 9.6 per cent last month.
“The economic growth Zambia achieved amidst global economic challenges was the highest among the many economies in Africa as well as developed countries,” Mr. Chipwende said.
More reforms in the energy and telecommunications sectors and the revision of the Companies Act were being undertaken to further Zambia’s attractiveness to FDI and improve its ranking on the Doing Business radar.
He said the South-to-South trade corridor initiative was important to increase investment inflows into Zambia through improved infrastructure development.
Infrastructure development beyond the Zambian borders through the South-to-South Corridor would make Zambia more attractive as it would reduce the cost of transportation of goods to the sea.
He said the initiative to build one-stop-border posts under the private public-partnership (PPP) would reduce the cost of doing business and improve Zambia’s attractiveness as an investment destination.