By Alexander Nkosi
I want to commend government for acquiring Mopani. Zambia’s annual mineral exports are around $5.5b. This money does not come back into our financial system, except for taxes and a small proportion of operational costs. With local ownership, we bring back the dollars into our financial system after selling our copper.
This coupled with prudent management can go a long way in stabilising our currency especially if we provide incentives to locals to set up companies and ensure 80% of mining inputs of production are sourced locally. We further have to ensure prudent management of the mine and resources.
This is actually the key whether the mine is in public or private hands. Once the mine is run prudently, it won’t be a problem to pay the $1.5b. We can actually get a loan and ensure the mine pays off the debt. The key is to ensure the mine is run prudently.
Editor’s note.
Is this a correct assessment of the deal? Have your say.