commerce gazette

Obituary 2014

Mutale — Fri, 11 Sep 2015 14:47:29 GMT

The death of the fifth republican President of Zambia, Michael Chilufya Sata, on October 28, 3 days after the jubilee was deeply saddening for the nation. He becomes the second president to die in office after Levy Patrick Mwanawasa.

On October 19, President Sata traveled to London for a medical checkup after months of government denying that he was seriously ill. Early morning on October 29, secretary to Cabinet Dr Roland Msiska announced on state television and radio that the President had passed on.

A requiem mass and state funeral was held at the National Heroes Stadium on November 11, 2014, and his body was buried at the Embassy Park Presidential cemetery in Lusaka.

Sata won the presidency on September 23, 2011 by unseating a government that had been in power for 20 years and the three years presidency of incumbent Movement for Multiparty Democracy (MMD) Rupiah Banda.

Sata’s political career was long and illustrious beginning in 1956. He joined the African National Congress which was agitating for independence. In 1960 he joined the United National Independence Party (UNIP), holding several positions as he climbed the ranks including becoming as a leader of its Youth League, serving as a municipal councilor, then as governor of Lusaka under first republican president, Kenneth Kaunda in 1985.

He was also member of parliament for Kabwata constituency in 1983 and was re-elected in 1988. He was appointed as minister of State in Charge of Decentralisation, a position he held until 1991.

With the introduction of multi-party democracy in 1990, he joined the MMD in 1991 and retained his position as Kabwata’s MP until 1996. His last parliamentary assignment was as MP for Mpika Central constituency from 1996 to 2001.

Sata came to the forefront of governance in Zambian politics, from 1991 to 2001 under president Frederick Chiluba. He served as minister in four 4 cabinet portfolios at Local Government and National Housing, Labour, Health and as a minister without Portfolio, the third-highest post in government.

In 2001 Chiluba passed him over as MMD aspirant presidential candidate in favour of Mwanawasa, Sata left to form his political party - Patriotic Front - and 10 years later succeeded at becoming Zambia’s 5th president.

His perseverance and hard working nature is among the hallmark of his character, presidency and legacy.

Dr Peter Matoka, 84
Many young people today have no idea that Dr Peter Matoka was among the young vibrant politicians of his time who participated in the freedom struggle and emerged to open government to Zambians after decades of white colonial rule by the British. He died September 12.

A distinguished citizen, Dr Matoka is among Zambian’s nationals that sought to serve the nation. He astutely analyzed the power structure and worked hard to become a pioneering leader in the national arena contributing to shaping Zambia’s post-independence economy.

Dr Matoka earned a bachelor’s degree from Natal University at the age of 24 in 1954 before joining the struggle for independence. This achievement could not have been easy as he was not only the first university graduate from North-Western province but was one of only 100 university graduates Zambia held at Independence.

With his credentials and involvement in the liberation struggle, it is not surprising that Dr Matoka was among the first citizens to hold public office - in the 14 member cabinet - under first republican President Dr Kenneth Kaunda in 1964 putting him and his peers in a unique governance position.

Dr Matoka was a member of UNIP’s Central Committee and served as Mwinilunga member of Parliament. He diligently served in government in various capacities including as minister of Information and was Zambia’s envoy to the United Kingdom.

Dr Matoka was a scholar at heart and when he was no longer participating in politics, he happily immersed himself in academia attaining a doctorate in Sociology at the age of 60 from the University of Warwick, UK. He was serving as chancellor at Copperstone University at the time of his death and he lectured at the University of Zambia prior.

The late Dr Matoka was honoured with a day of national mourning and buried in Chief Kanongesha’s chiefdom in Mwinilunga.

Willa D. Mung’omba, 74
Prominent lawyer and business executive Willa D. Mung’omba died in South Africa February 16.

Mung’omba is among the founding members of the Law Association of Zambia.

Involved in the legal community for more than 45 years, he was a leader in business, a wise counsellor to many and, at the same time, someone who also understood and promoted good public policy.

Mung’omba who served as Constitution Review Commission (CRC) chairperson, was highly regarded for producing a draft constitution that reflected the desires of the Zambian people.

His peers remember him with respect throughout his professional service, and recall that he was never boastful and was passionate about the constitution making process, frequently spoke to legal practitioners and always generous with his time as a mentor.

‘I have personally known the late Mr Mung’omba over the years, as a composed, soft-spoken, devoted patriot and intellectual hub that served this country with utmost sincerity and enthusiasm,’ President Sata said of him in a message of condolences to his family.

Mung’omba was active in corporate circles and was executive chairman of the board at ZCCM Investments Holdings PLC from 2011 until his death.

Previously, the World Bank appointed him team leader for the initial preparation of the ZCCM Limited privatisation report and plan by the United Kingdom-based Investment Bank NM, Rothschild & Sons and international law firm Clifford Chance.

Other corporate tenures include his service as president of the African Development Bank from 1980 to 1985, chairperson and director of Capital Bank Limited and he was also non-executive director on the initial board of the Emerging African Infrastructure Fund, a donor-funded financial instrument encouraging public and private sector partnership in infrastructure development in sub-Saharan Africa.

Dennis Liwewe, 78

The death of Dennis Liwewe following a long battle with liver complications was confirmed by his son Ponga,
April 22.

The news that Zambia’s highly respected and beloved legendary football commentator had died brought an outpouring of tributes by players, colleagues and fans, all expressing sadness at his passing and recalling how his play by play rendition of the game made everyone sit up and take notice.

For a generation he was the most familiar and respected name in football broadcasting.

Liwewe spoke a much different soccer language from other sports pundits ... which appealed to everyone, young or old, male or female, football fan or not you paid attention to his commentary.

His jubilant ‘It’s a gooooooal!’ each time Zambia scored, vibrated through the airwaves and made you wish you were at the stadium to celebrate the moment. He was like a ball of fire, the man made sportscasting interesting.

Liwewe was an authority on Zambian football and had that great balance of being both entertaining and factually right, backing up what he was saying with statistics and a sharp memory of previous field exploits by players.

He was the voice of football for Zambia’s first appearance at the 1974 Africa Cup finals in Egypt where the team was the runner up at the competition and at the 1980 Moscow and 1988 Seoul Olympic football tournaments. His easy-going style, which rose to great excitement upon great plays on the field especially in key situations, brought the games closer to home.

He also led the nation in paying a moving tribute to the Zambia national team that perished off the coast of Libreville in Gabon in April 1993. His love of football and also his accessibility to fans earned him the prestigious Order of Distinguished Service in 1977 bestowed on him by President Kenneth Kaunda.

Dennis Lota, 40
Zambia’s football star Dennis ‘Chesa Mpama’ Lota died in hospital on February 4 after falling ill a week earlier.

One of the few Zambian international football stars, the news of his death caught many Zambians off guard, as they had no idea he had been taken ill. Expressing sadness at his passing fans including President Sata paid tribute to his impressive soccer career.

A former striker for the Zambian national team, Chipolopolo, he went on to play for one of South Africa’s biggest clubs Orlando Pirates, where he earned his nickname – Chesa Mpama – for his goal celebration of rubbing his hands together.

Dennis represented Zambia in four Africa Cup of Nations final squads in 1996, 1998, 2000 and 2002, and was a prolific goal scorer for Chipolopolo.

His career saw him play for several clubs in Zambia including Zanaco, Nchanga Rangers, Kabwe Warriors and Konkola Blades.

In South Africa besides his stay with the Pirates, Dennis also played for Amazulu, Mpumalanga Black Aces, Witbank Aces, FC AK, Dangerous Darkies and Moroka Swallows, where he returned after retiring to work as assistant coach until his untimely death.

2013 Obituary

Mutale — Tue, 17 Jun 2014 07:34:51 GMT

	His Eminence Medardo Cardinal Joseph Mazombwe, the Archbishop Emeritus of Lusaka Archdiocese passed away in Lusaka’s University Teaching Hospital on August 29 from cancer. Born on September 24, 1931 at Katete in the Eastern province of Zambia Cardinal Mazombwe was ordained a Catholic priest on 4 September 1960 and become Bishop of Chipata Diocese on February 7, 1971. Between 1996 and 2006, he was the Archbishop of Lusaka until his retirement in 2006. On November 30, 2010 Catholics in Zambia celebrated one of their proudest moments when the then Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI created the Emeritus Archbishop of Lusaka, Medardo Joseph Mazombwe, as Zambia’s first indigenous Cardinal, at a public consistory held in St. Peter’s Basilica, at the Vatican. He returned home to much jubilation and cheer for this achievement. A mass of thanks giving was held at the sprawling Cathedral of the Child Jesus (Pope Square) in Lusaka, a building that is among his most visible pastoral initiatives. Among the thousands that came out to wish him well on his ordination as Cardinal, few knew that he was ill with cancer. And as his illness progressed Cardinal Mazombwe remained optimistic and courageous, a virtue that inspired many that visited him in the last year of his life. He never gave up his passion for the affairs of the church and the nation. Over the years he held several senior positions in the local and regional church among the most notable appointment was his tenure as Zambia Episcopal president (1972 – 1975; 1988 – 1990 and 1999 – 2002); and chairman of the regional conferences of the Association of Member Episcopal Conferences in Eastern Africa (A.M.E.C.E.A.) (1979 – 1986). As Archbishop of Lusaka, Cardinal Mazombwe, was an ardent campaigner for the cancellation of Zambia’s international debt, in the Jubilee 2000 movement. Due to the overwhelming number of people from the Eastern province who wished to travel to Lusaka for the funeral of the late Cardinal, his body was flown there to Chipata, to accord them the opportunity to pay their last respects. The late Cardinal Mazombwe was returned to Lusaka and was laid to rest within the grounds of the Cathedral of the Child Jesus September 3 after a requiem mass.


	Hon. Kennedy Sakeni, 56, died September 5 at UTH after an illness. He was Patriotic Front (PF) member of Parliament for Mansa central, Information and Broadcasting Services minister and chief government spokesperson prior to his death. He also served as minister of Home Affairs and Luapula province chairperson. The late Sakeni was a career intelligence officer in the Zambia Security Intelligence Service (ZSIS) before embarking on a political career. He first served as member of Parliament under the Movement for Multi-Party Democracy (MMD) representing Chifunabuli constituency from 2001 to 2005 before resigning to join the PF in 2010. Among Sakeni’s many achievements was the impetus to media law reforms and the liberalisation for the media to operate more freely. He granted broadcasting licences to a number of private radio stations recording an impressive growth with almost every province boasting one. Sakeni was accorded three-days of national mourning and State funeral. He was buried on September 10th in his home village of Samfya district, Luapula province. President Sata and First Lady Christian Kaseba were among hundreds of mourners. Sakeni is survived his wife, Lillian, and thirteen children.
	Dr Patrick Mwewa Anthony Chikusu, 62, member of Parliament for Katuba constituency and deputy minister of Health, was evacuated for treatment to South Africa after suffering a heart attack December 2, where he died that evening. He had earlier been admitted to Coptic Hospital in Lusaka before being evacuated for specialist treatment. Described as a man of humility by fellow MPs, Dr Chikusa will be remembered by his peers as an intellect that joined politics to serve the people. Dr Chikusa was elected to the national assembly in 2011 as the Movement for Multi-party Democracy (MMD), MP for Katuba constituency. He greatly contributed to the party’s victory in the 2001 and 2006 tripartite elections, and also in the presidential by-election of 2008. The late minister was one of the opposition lawmakers President Michael Sata appointed as deputy ministers in his government in 2012. Vice president Guy Scott recalled the friction this caused but eventually calm returned. ‘The world’s leading authorities on reconciliation, co-operation and compromise are the Africans. Dr Chikusu was one of the compromisers, one of the reconcilers to make life better and leave behind bad parts of the past,’ Scott said. He was an accomplished academic of international repute who contributed in the field of research particularly in pharmacy, his area of specialization. Between 2004 and 2005 when Zambia grappled with how traditional herbal medicines could contribution to the HIV/AIDS treatment, Dr Chikusu was appointed by the government to be the principal investigator on the herbal remedy claims made by the Sondashi, Mailacin and Mayeyanin formulations. Using the World Health Organisation (WHO) guidelines, he, together with colleagues made conclusions which are internationally recognised. The late Dr Chikusu obtained a bachelor’s degree in Pharmacy (1974), from University of Ife in Nigeria. He holds a master of Science degree in Pharmacy (1979) Leeds University, United Kingdom and a doctor of Philosophy (PHD) Strathclyde University (1983) Glasgow, United Kingdom. Dr Chikusa is survived by a wife, Edah, son Dr Clarence Chikusu and two daughters Dorothy and Fiona
	Benjamin Yorum Mwila, 70, who was former Defense minister from 1991 to 1997 in the late president Fredrick Chiluba’s first cabinet in the Movement for Multi-Party Democracy (MMD), died at a hospital in South Africa on August 17. He also served as minister of Energy and Water Development. Mwila, who was nicknamed B.Y., was first elected to the National Assembly as MP for Luanshya constituency in 1991. In 2000, MMD was at a crossroad with Chiluba barred from seeking a third term as president due to the constitutional term limits, BY openly considered a bid for the presidential candidacy and drew criticism from fellow party members. Undaunted by the critic B.Y. left MMD and founded the Zambia Republican Party to fulfill his ambition of reaching the highest levels of governance. His bid failed as he got approximately 4.84% of the vote. In the aftermath, he continued working in opposition and in 2006 his party merged with several other political parties to form the National Democratic Focus (NDF). He was elected back to Parliament as MP for the Nchelenge constituency. Ever concentrating on the mechanics and machinations of politics, B.Y. returned to MMD in 2011 with the hope of re-contesting his Nchelenge seat but was defeated. For the past two years until his death B.Y. remained under the political radar. Conveying his condolences, President Michael Sata expressed sadness at the passing of B.Y. and commended him as proficient entrepreneur who exceled in his business and political career. ‘Our departed colleague served this country with brilliance and vigilance in the many national tasks he executed.’ Following a funeral service at the Cathedral of the Child Jesus in Lusaka, B.Y. was buried at Leopard Hill Memorial Park on August 22.
	Dominic Mulaisho, 79, former Bank of Zambia (BoZ) governor died in Lusaka July 2 at his home. He had shown no sign of illness and collapsed while reading a book. Mulaisho served under Dr Kenneth David Kaunda’s administration in the first republic. Besides being BoZ’s tenth central bank governor from 1992 to 1995, he held several senior portifolios including as economic advisor to the former president - Dr Kaunda, he was also a World Bank consultant and permanent secretary in the Ministry of Mines among others. Mulaisho was born in 1933 in Feira, graduated from the University College of Rhodesia and Nyasaland in what is now Zimbabwe.
	Michael Norgrove, 31, a Zambian born professional light-middleweight boxer from Woodford Green, London died on April 6 several days after collapsing in the ring on 31 March. He was treated for bleeding on the brain following the bout against Sedgley’s Tom Bowen at The Ring in Blackfriars, south London. Norgrove was the first boxer to die after a fight in the UK for 18 years. This was his first fight after a two-year break from the sport. Nicknamed the ‘Zambesi Hitman’, probably after the Zambezi river that runs through Zambia, Norgrove had an unbeaten professional record and was yet to make a name in the country of his birth. Born in Kabwe, Norgrove was the son of a British expatriate who worked for Zambian Railways. The family left Zambia at the end of his father’s contract when Norgrove was seven. Norgrove was a sparring partner of boxer James DeGale, who won a gold medal in the Beijing Olympic Games.

2013 Appointments

Mutale — Mon, 03 Mar 2014 13:04:17 GMT

Geoffrey W. Simukoko was recently elected and appointed as the African representative to the Board of Management of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (CIArb) UK.

CIArb is the world’s leading professional body for promoting the settlement of disputes by arbitration, mediation and other private dispute resolution methods.

Simukoko’s appointment is in recognition of his contribution to the development and popularization of ‘alternative dispute resolution’ (ADR) which include arbitration, mediation and conciliation in Zambia.

Simukoko obtained his bachelor of Law degree (LLB) from the University of Zambia 1973 and has been practicing law since being admitted as an advocate on the 6th of May 1974. He also holds a master of Arts degree (Management Studies) from University of Leeds which he obtained in 1983.

He became a member of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (CIArb) UK in 2000 and he also has a certificate in arbitration from the Forum for International Commercial Arbitration (FICA-Geneva) which he obtained in 1999. He was accredited a mediator under the High Court of Zambia court annexed mediation after pursuing a course in mediation by Chemonics International Inc. of the USA.

Besides his legal and arbitration achievements Simukoko has held executive management positions, and directorships in several companies and corporations in Zambia, among them managing director, Zambia National Building Society (1990 – 1998), general manager, Mansa Batteries Ltd (1986 – 1989), Group Corporation secretary and legal counsel, ZIMCO Ltd, (1989 – 1990), Group company secretary and legal counsel INDECO Ltd, (1983 – 1986) Corporate and Economic Planning manager INDECO (1982 – 1983) and legal counsel INDECO Ltd (1974 – 1982)

Simukoko is currently, a managing partner in the law firm Patmat Legal Practitioners. He has audience before the Industrial Relations Court, High Court and Supreme Court of Zambia. He is active in the practice of arbitration, mediation and conciliation and is an accredited tutor of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators in arbitration courses run by the Zambian Branch on behalf of the Institute.

Congratulating Simukoko on his appointment CIArb Zambia branch said, ‘It was proud to have one of its members as the Africa representative on the Board of Management of the Institute and would like to wish Mr. Simukoko the Best of luck on his appointment.’

Simukoko is married to Joyce Nonde Simukoko.

Fayaz King, managing director Airtel Zambia since August 2010, will be moving on to take up a special business development project for Airtel Africa a press statement released to Commerce Gazette announced.

King at the helm of the Zambian operation grew the telecommunication services provider’s network in both the urban and rural areas to unparalleled levels. The company currently has 1,089 and 794 telecommunications sites respectively.

During his tenure King oversaw tumultuous times when Airtel filed notice of Compulsory Acquisition to Minority Shareholders on February 18, 2011. The minority shareholders challenged the Compulsory Acquisition in the High Court and won on the grounds that Airtel had flouted the law by offering to buy shares from them at ZMK 710 per share without following laid procedures. The court stated that Compulsory Acquisition of shares should be in consonance with the law to attract a fair price. Airtel appealed to the Supreme Court but later discontinued their appeal.

Airtel now holds more than 97 percent of the company shares after getting 17 percent more from the 21 percent which were on Lusaka Stock Exchange soon after taking over the Zain Zambia unit.

Speaking about the transitions, Jayant Khosla, CEO, Airtel Africa Anglophone Region said, ‘As we continue to leverage Fayaz’s expertise regionally, we would like to congratulate him for the exceptional infrastructure he has put in place. Zambia has always been a key market with great potential for growth within the region.’

Geoffrey musonda’s appointment as chief executive officer was announced by the Board of Directors of the Rural Electrification Authority.

Musonda has held the position in an acting capacity until his selection.

Musonda holds a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Zambia and a master’s degree in Maintenance Engineering from Augsburg University of Applied Sciences, Germany.

Prior to working at the Rural Electrification Authority, Musonda was assistant director at the Ministry of Mines, Energy and Water Development.

Musonda brings to Rural Electrification Authority a wide understanding of the energy sector in Zambia and has demonstrated good qualities of leadership in management.

Congratulating Musonda on the appointment, the Board said it is ‘confident that Musonda is equal to the task of reinvigorating the Rural Electrification Authority to accelerate the development of the rural areas through electrification’.

Maybin Nsupila was appointed chief executive officer of the Zambia Association of Manufacturers (ZAM) effective March 1, 2013 by the ZAM Executive Board. He succeeds Roseta Mwape. He will oversee the interests of the manufacturing sector in Zambia.

Maybin brings 11 years of experience as a development practitioner to the Association. He has been involved in private sector development, covering trade and industrial development particularly focusing on policy formulation and advocacy, trade negotiations, formulation and delivery of trade and industry related technical assistance and capacity building, among other things.

Maybin began his career at the Foundation for International Community Assistance (FINCA) entering as a credit officer in 2001 before moving to Ministry of Commerce, Trade and Industry in 2002 where he served as an economist, Multilateral Trade. His stay at the Ministry was punctuated by his anchoring the formulation and implementation of two Technical Assistance and Trade Capacity Building Programmes namely the Joint Integrated Technical Assistance Programme (JITAP) and the Capacity Building for Private Sector Development (CBPSD), both of which were successful.

In 2004, he moved to the Export Board of Zambia (EBZ) where he worked as an economist and corporate planner. Maybin helped EBZ win the Award of Best Trade Promotion Organisation (TPO) in the Least Developed Countries category in 2007 under the International Trade Centre’s TPO Awards.

Following the integration of EBZ into the Zambia Development Agency (ZDA), Maybin served ZDA as a senior policy and planning officer under the Planning and Research Directorate until end of 2007. The height of his stay at ZDA was his appointment as the first secretariat coordinator for Citizens Economic Empowerment Commission (CEEC) to coordinate work leading to the operationalisation of the CEEC Act including setting up the CEEC Secretariat.

Prior to his appointment at ZAM, Maybin was team leader and national coordinator for the Enhanced Integrated Framework (EIF) National Implementation Unit (NIU) whose sustainability he pioneered having put together a project proposal that racked in almost US$ 1,000,000 to be used over a three-year period. Earlier, between 2007 and 2010, he had served as national trade expert (UNDP consultant) in the same unit, under the earlier version of the programme, the Integrated Framework (IF).

Maybin holds a master of science (MSc) in development evaluation and management from the Institute of Development Policy and Management (IOB) of the University of Antwerp, Belgium and a bachelor of business administration (BBA) from the Copperbelt University, Kitwe, Zambia. He also possesses a trade policy diploma from the World Trade Organisation (WTO) Training Institute and an advanced certificate in World Trade, Conformity Assessment and Quality Infrastructure Development from the Swedish Board for Accreditation and Conformity Assessment (SWEDAC), among other professional qualifications.

Over the years, Maybin has worked, developed and managed trade related technical cooperation and capacity building programmes with several donors and technical agencies including the government of Finland, USAID, the European Commission (EC), Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), World Trade Organisation (WTO), International Trade Centre (ITC), International Development Law Organisation (IDLO), United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO), and the EU-funded TradeCom Facility, among others. He has also been involved in trade negotiations at multilateral level under the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and the ACP-EU, as well as at regional level in Southern and Eastern Africa under the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) and under the Tripartite (SADC, COMESA and the East African Community (EAC). He has also sat on several trade and industry related national committees.

With his expertise and experience, Maybin should be able to help ZAM reach new heights in promoting and upholding the interests of the manufacturers in Zambia.

2013 Appointments

Mutale — Mon, 03 Mar 2014 12:54:16 GMT

	Geoffrey W. Simukoko was recently elected and appointed as the African representative to the Board of Management of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (CIArb) UK. CIArb is the world’s leading professional body for promoting the settlement of disputes by arbitration, mediation and other private dispute resolution methods. Simukoko’s appointment is in recognition of his contribution to the development and popularization of ‘alternative dispute resolution’ (ADR) which include arbitration, mediation and conciliation in Zambia. Simukoko obtained his bachelor of Law degree (LLB) from the University of Zambia 1973 and has been practicing law since being admitted as an advocate on the 6th of May 1974. He also holds a master of Arts degree (Management Studies) from University of Leeds which he obtained in 1983. He became a member of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (CIArb) UK in 2000 and he also has a certificate in arbitration from the Forum for International Commercial Arbitration (FICA-Geneva) which he obtained in 1999. He was accredited a mediator under the High Court of Zambia court annexed mediation after pursuing a course in mediation by Chemonics International Inc. of the USA. Besides his legal and arbitration achievements Simukoko has held executive management positions, and directorships in several companies and corporations in Zambia, among them managing director, Zambia National Building Society (1990 – 1998), general manager, Mansa Batteries Ltd (1986 – 1989), Group Corporation secretary and legal counsel, ZIMCO Ltd, (1989 – 1990), Group company secretary and legal counsel INDECO Ltd, (1983 – 1986) Corporate and Economic Planning manager INDECO (1982 – 1983) and legal counsel INDECO Ltd (1974 – 1982) Simukoko is currently, a managing partner in the law firm Patmat Legal Practitioners. He has audience before the Industrial Relations Court, High Court and Supreme Court of Zambia. He is active in the practice of arbitration, mediation and conciliation and is an accredited tutor of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators in arbitration courses run by the Zambian Branch on behalf of the Institute. Congratulating Simukoko on his appointment CIArb Zambia branch said, ‘It was proud to have one of its members as the Africa representative on the Board of Management of the Institute and would like to wish Mr. Simukoko the Best of luck on his appointment.’ Simukoko is married to Joyce Nonde Simukoko.
	Fayaz King, managing director Airtel Zambia since August 2010, will be moving on to take up a special business development project for Airtel Africa a press statement released to Commerce Gazette announced. King at the helm of the Zambian operation grew the telecommunication services provider’s network in both the urban and rural areas to unparalleled levels. The company currently has 1,089 and 794 telecommunications sites respectively. During his tenure King oversaw tumultuous times when Airtel filed notice of Compulsory Acquisition to Minority Shareholders on February 18, 2011. The minority shareholders challenged the Compulsory Acquisition in the High Court and won on the grounds that Airtel had flouted the law by offering to buy shares from them at ZMK 710 per share without following laid procedures. The court stated that Compulsory Acquisition of shares should be in consonance with the law to attract a fair price. Airtel appealed to the Supreme Court but later discontinued their appeal. Airtel now holds more than 97 percent of the company shares after getting 17 percent more from the 21 percent which were on Lusaka Stock Exchange soon after taking over the Zain Zambia unit. Speaking about the transitions, Jayant Khosla, CEO, Airtel Africa Anglophone Region said, ‘As we continue to leverage Fayaz’s expertise regionally, we would like to congratulate him for the exceptional infrastructure he has put in place. Zambia has always been a key market with great potential for growth within the region.’

2013 Quoted

Mutale — Thu, 27 Feb 2014 13:41:34 GMT

	‘The sheer size of the contract and the audacity of Zesco to sign an agreement with a company whose record is well known by the Ant-Corrption Commission (ACC) is shocking to the nation. We are deeply disappointed and appalled that a company that was debarred by the Word Bank for impropriety is back and Zesco is having fanfare signing contracts without seeing anything wrong in entering into a contract with the company. it will be interesting to know the position of government and the ACC over this Zesco fiasco. We challenge the government to investigate how a company that was blacklisted can now be doing business without new information about their new conduct. It is absolutely necessary that a procurement audit of this particular contract is conducted by government, with the involvement of all necessary law enforcement agencies, especially the Anti-Corruption Commission.’ Lee Habasonda Transparency International Zambia - president Habasonda said the behavior of Zesco does not help the image of the country in terms of making Zambia’s stand on corruption to outsiders clear. The Post \| Feb 11, 2013		‘We support government’s move to reject Zesco’s application to increase electricity tariffs. The current arrangement allows consumers to pay for the inefficient services by the power utility company. This is what we have been advocating as a union; to see Zesco improving on its service delivery. Those clients that are not connected despite having paid connection fees should be supplied with electricity.’ Leonard Hikaumba Zambia Congress of Trade Union - president Hikaumba commenting on government’s rejection of proposed Zesco’s tariff hike. Zambia Daily Mail \| Jan 10, 2013
	‘Telling lies has become normal and this is frightening. It is a shame on our nation we should be working at changing our attitudes. We are losing our morals sense of value as Zambians,’ Reverend Suzanna Matale General Secretary – Council of Churches in Zambia Saying that it is a shame that telling lies had become normal. She said it was also frightening that people that have been elected to leadership position were not accountable to anyone but themselves. The Post I April 4		‘It is not easy to lie to somebody who knows you as a liar; and in this case, we know our opposition leaders as [being] insincere and dishonest. That is why they cant tell us any more lies and the only way to air their deceptions is by using the BBC,’ Fr Mambwe Mpasa Catholic church vicar general Commenting on Hakainde Hichilema’s need to apologize for changing opinions on Rupiah Banda. The Post I April 10
	‘For me I only say it is bad timing on the part of government. This will have a great impact on our rural farmers because they will have difficulties in transporting their farming produce to the markets. It would have been better if this was done earlier, at least by now people would have adjusted. As it is now it will be difficult for people to make adjustments.’ Chief Madzimawe Commenting on the removal of maize and fuel subsidies Daily Mail I May 18 2013		‘There is enough evidence to show that the subsidies have largely benefited richer farmers and middlemen such as a few millers and transport companies, hence the need to eliminate them... what we need to be careful about is that those who are already poor do not suffer more while these changes are taking place. The removal of the fuel subsidy has already led to an increase in transport costs and prices of some goods that are used by all.’ Kundhavi Kadiresan World Bank country manager Commenting on the removal of maize and fuel subsidies Daily Mail I May 22 2013

2013 Quoted

Mutale — Thu, 27 Feb 2014 12:46:31 GMT

2014 Budget continuing on equity

Mutale — Thu, 27 Feb 2014 12:35:08 GMT

Zambia’s minister of Finance, Hon Alexander B. Chikwanda presented the National Budget for 2014 whose theme is ‘Moving Forward to Consolidate Growth and Social Justice in Peace and Unity.

The Budget, which was presented, in four parts continues to seek to deliver on the Patriotic Front (PF) government’s campaign promise – to deliver a more fair distribution of the nation’s wealth.

Looking back at the PF’s performance so far, critics can describe it as a mixed bag of good intentions and promises that wait to be realized. Assessing PF’s overall performance since assuming power two years ago, the are two policies that have had the most impact on people lives and business performance are the increase of the minimum wage (2012 Budget) and the removal of fuel and maize subsidies (2013 Budget).

2014 Budget Highlights
Part I: Overview of the global and domestic economies
The minister highlighted that:
•        The global economy continues to slowly recover with growth in 2013 projected at 2.9 percent.
•        Commodity prices have generally been lower in 2013 relative to 2012 due to sluggish growth in the world economy.
•        Copper prices remain high whilst oil prices have generally stabilised.
•        Projected GDP remained strong at above 6 percent. This is on account of favourable performance in the mining, construction,
          manufacturing, transport and communication sectors.
•        The banking sector remains favourable.
•        The external sector has improved.
•        Exports of gemstones, cement, electricity, sugar, tobacco, cotton lint, maize and maize seed all registered strong growth.
•        The stock of Government’s external debt has increased marginally by 1.8 percent. Interest payments on Government bonds have
          increased.
•        he government approved the issuance of bonds by the International Finance Corporation and the African Development Bank to support the
          private sector.
•        The Cheque Truncation System became operational on 1st February 2013, with all commercial banks expected to re-engineer their systems
          by February 2014.
•        Government issued Statutory Instrument Number 55 to facilitate better monitoring of financial flows between Zambia and the rest of the
          world.

Part II: Macroeconomic objectives, policies and strategies for 2014 and the medium term Macroeconomic objectives for 2014 include:
•        Achieve real GDP growth rate of above 7 percent.
•        Create at least 200 000 decent jobs.
•        Attain end year inflation of no more than 6.5 percent.
•        Increase international reserves to over 3 months of import cover.
•        Maintain a fiscally sustainable public external debt level so that debt service and amortisation do not exceed 30 percent of domestic
          revenues.
•        Increase domestic revenue collections to over 21 percent of GDP.
•        Limit domestic borrowing to 2.5 percent of GDP and contain the overall deficit to no more than 6.6 percent of GDP.  

The government has formulated a National Strategy for Industrialisation and Job Creation with a focus on agriculture, tourism, manufacturing, energy and construction sectors.

Part III: The 2014 Budget Expenditure
Government proposes to spend ZMW42.68 billion, which is 30.7 percent of GDP. A total of ZMW 29.54 billion will be financed from domestic revenues, ZMW 2.63 billion will be financed from grants and loans, while the balance will be financed through foreign and domestic borrowing.

The key revenue mobilisation measures include:
•         Increase in excise duty on airtime from 10 percent to 15 percent.
•         Revoke the Statutory Instrument that suspended excise duty on clear beer so that the substantive duty rate of 60 percent is once again
           effective.
•         Increase the property transfer tax from 5 percent to 10 percent.
•         Introduction of a charge of 0.2 percent of the value transferred on money transfer service to a recipient within or outside the Republic of
           Zambia.

The above measures will take effect on 1 January 2014.

Rationalisation of the tax system
•         Expand the Value Added Tax base by shifting several categories of zero rated goods and services to the standard rated category.
•         Extend the withholding tax to profits distributed by branches of foreign companies.
•       Increase withholding tax on commissions, public entertainment fees and payments made to non- resident contractors to 20 percent from
           15 percent.
•         Reduction of withholding tax on rental income from 15 percent to 10 percent and make this a final tax.
•       Exemption from withholding tax on interest arising from the debenture part of a property linked unit paid to Zambian investors in any
           Property Loan Stock Company listed on Lusaka Stock Exchange.
•         Introduction of the withholding tax of 20 percent on winnings from gaming, lotteries and betting and make it a final tax.
•       Increase of the PAYE exemption threshold from ZMW 2,200 to ZMW 3,000.
•         Monetary transfer services within and outside Zambia are now subject to a charge of 0.2 percent of the value of the transfer.

Streamlining of tax incentives
•       Exemption from paying duty for first five years by investors who pledge to invest at least US$500 million in a priority sector, as well as
           preferential income tax rates for a further five year period.

Macro economic objectives, policies and strategies for 2014 and the medium term

Macro-economic objectives
The development plan for the year 2014 is in line with the government’s development agenda. At the centre of the plan is an ambitious job creation agenda. The rebasing of the country’s national accounts is being concluded. This will provide a more accurate measurement of the economy and facilitate better informed economic policies and decision making.

2013 Quoted

Mutale — Fri, 22 Nov 2013 12:12:07 GMT

2013 Appointments

Mutale — Fri, 22 Nov 2013 11:55:20 GMT

	Geoffrey W. Simukoko was recently elected and appointed as the African representative to the Board of Management of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (CIArb) UK. CIArb is the world’s leading professional body for promoting the settlement of disputes by arbitration, mediation and other private dispute resolution methods. Simukoko’s appointment is in recognition of his contribution to the development and popularization of ‘alternative dispute resolution’ (ADR) which include arbitration, mediation and conciliation in Zambia. Simukoko obtained his bachelor of Law degree (LLB) from the University of Zambia 1973 and has been practicing law since being admitted as an advocate on the 6th of May 1974. He also holds a master of Arts degree (Management Studies) from University of Leeds which he obtained in 1983. He became a member of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (CIArb) UK in 2000 and he also has a certificate in arbitration from the Forum for International Commercial Arbitration (FICA-Geneva) which he obtained in 1999. He was accredited a mediator under the High Court of Zambia court annexed mediation after pursuing a course in mediation by Chemonics International Inc. of the USA. Besides his legal and arbitration achievements Simukoko has held executive management positions, and directorships in several companies and corporations in Zambia, among them managing director, Zambia National Building Society (1990 – 1998), general manager, Mansa Batteries Ltd (1986 – 1989), Group Corporation secretary and legal counsel, ZIMCO Ltd, (1989 – 1990), Group company secretary and legal counsel INDECO Ltd, (1983 – 1986) Corporate and Economic Planning manager INDECO (1982 – 1983) and legal counsel INDECO Ltd (1974 – 1982) Simukoko is currently, a managing partner in the law firm Patmat Legal Practitioners. He has audience before the Industrial Relations Court, High Court and Supreme Court of Zambia. He is active in the practice of arbitration, mediation and conciliation and is an accredited tutor of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators in arbitration courses run by the Zambian Branch on behalf of the Institute. Congratulating Simukoko on his appointment CIArb Zambia branch said, ‘It was proud to have one of its members as the Africa representative on the Board of Management of the Institute and would like to wish Mr. Simukoko the Best of luck on his appointment.’ Simukoko is married to Joyce Nonde Simukoko.
	Fayaz King, managing director Airtel Zambia since August 2010, has moved on to take up a special business development project for Airtel Africa a press statement released to Commerce Gazette announced. King at the helm of the Zambian operation grew the telecommunication services provider’s network in both the urban and rural areas to unparalleled levels. The company currently has 1,089 and 794 telecommunications sites respectively. During his tenure King oversaw tumultuous times when Airtel filed notice of Compulsory Acquisition to Minority Shareholders on February 18, 2011. The minority shareholders challenged the Compulsory Acquisition in the High Court and won on the grounds that Airtel had flouted the law by offering to buy shares from them at ZMK 710 per share without following laid procedures. The court stated that Compulsory Acquisition of shares should be in consonance with the law to attract a fair price. Airtel appealed to the Supreme Court but later discontinued their appeal. Airtel now holds more than 97 percent of the company shares after getting 17 percent more from the 21 percent which were on Lusaka Stock Exchange soon after taking over the Zain Zambia unit. Speaking about the transitions, Jayant Khosla, CEO, Airtel Africa Anglophone Region said, ‘As we continue to leverage Fayaz’s expertise regionally, we would like to congratulate him for the exceptional infrastructure he has put in place. Zambia has always been a key market with great potential for growth within the region.’
	Geoffrey musonda’s appointment as chief executive officer was announced by the Board of Directors of the Rural Electrification Authority. Musonda has held the position in an acting capacity until his selection. Musonda holds a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Zambia and a master’s degree in Maintenance Engineering from Augsburg University of Applied Sciences, Germany. Prior to working at the Rural Electrification Authority, Musonda was assistant director at the Ministry of Mines, Energy and Water Development. Musonda brings to Rural Electrification Authority a wide understanding of the energy sector in Zambia and has demonstrated good qualities of leadership in management. Congratulating Musonda on the appointment, the Board said it is ‘confident that Musonda is equal to the task of reinvigorating the Rural Electrification Authority to accelerate the development of the rural areas through electrification’.
	Maybin Nsupila was appointed chief executive officer of the Zambia Association of Manufacturers (ZAM) effective March 1, 2013 by the ZAM Executive Board. He succeeds Roseta Mwape. He will oversee the interests of the manufacturing sector in Zambia. Maybin brings 11 years of experience as a development practitioner to the Association. He has been involved in private sector development, covering trade and industrial development particularly focusing on policy formulation and advocacy, trade negotiations, formulation and delivery of trade and industry related technical assistance and capacity building, among other things. Maybin began his career at the Foundation for International Community Assistance (FINCA) entering as a credit officer in 2001 before moving to Ministry of Commerce, Trade and Industry in 2002 where he served as an economist, Multilateral Trade. His stay at the Ministry was punctuated by his anchoring the formulation and implementation of two Technical Assistance and Trade Capacity Building Programmes namely the Joint Integrated Technical Assistance Programme (JITAP) and the Capacity Building for Private Sector Development (CBPSD), both of which were successful. In 2004, he moved to the Export Board of Zambia (EBZ) where he worked as an economist and corporate planner. Maybin helped EBZ win the Award of Best Trade Promotion Organisation (TPO) in the Least Developed Countries category in 2007 under the International Trade Centre’s TPO Awards. Following the integration of EBZ into the Zambia Development Agency (ZDA), Maybin served ZDA as a senior policy and planning officer under the Planning and Research Directorate until end of 2007. The height of his stay at ZDA was his appointment as the first secretariat coordinator for Citizens Economic Empowerment Commission (CEEC) to coordinate work leading to the operationalisation of the CEEC Act including setting up the CEEC Secretariat. Prior to his appointment at ZAM, Maybin was team leader and national coordinator for the Enhanced Integrated Framework (EIF) National Implementation Unit (NIU) whose sustainability he pioneered having put together a project proposal that racked in almost US$ 1,000,000 to be used over a three-year period. Earlier, between 2007 and 2010, he had served as national trade expert (UNDP consultant) in the same unit, under the earlier version of the programme, the Integrated Framework (IF). Maybin holds a master of science (MSc) in development evaluation and management from the Institute of Development Policy and Management (IOB) of the University of Antwerp, Belgium and a bachelor of business administration (BBA) from the Copperbelt University, Kitwe, Zambia. He also possesses a trade policy diploma from the World Trade Organisation (WTO) Training Institute and an advanced certificate in World Trade, Conformity Assessment and Quality Infrastructure Development from the Swedish Board for Accreditation and Conformity Assessment (SWEDAC), among other professional qualifications. Over the years, Maybin has worked, developed and managed trade related technical cooperation and capacity building programmes with several donors and technical agencies including the government of Finland, USAID, the European Commission (EC), Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), World Trade Organisation (WTO), International Trade Centre (ITC), International Development Law Organisation (IDLO), United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO), and the EU-funded TradeCom Facility, among others. He has also been involved in trade negotiations at multilateral level under the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and the ACP-EU, as well as at regional level in Southern and Eastern Africa under the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) and under the Tripartite (SADC, COMESA and the East African Community (EAC). He has also sat on several trade and industry related national committees. With his expertise and experience, Maybin should be able to help ZAM reach new heights in promoting and upholding the interests of the manufacturers in Zambia.

Catholic Bishops urge government to be inclusive

Mutale — Fri, 22 Nov 2013 11:11:05 GMT

Catholic Bishops urge government to be inclusive

The Zambia Episcopal Conference released their pastoral statement on government’s performance in 2012.

In the statement they discussed a number of varying concerns that affect the Zambian people.

Registration of all mobile SIM cards
On the business front the bishops comment on the call by government through the Zambia Information and Communication Technology Authority (ZICTA) for all mobile phone users in Zambia to register their SIM cards with service providers or risk having them deactivated.

According to ZICTA, the move is meant to deter criminality in Zambia and would be in accordance with the Information Communication Technologies (ICT) Act No 15 of 2009 and the Statutory Instrument on the Registration of Electronic Communication Apparatus No. 65 of 2011.

While the intention to deter criminality and control abuse of communication technologies is noble, they called upon the Zambian government to put in place legal guarantees for the protection of personal data and privacy.

The Judiciary
The pastoral statement said there has been persistent discourse on the state of the judiciary with respect to its independence and impartiality.

There are also many unresolved questions of public interest that have been left hanging and unanswered by the Executive. For example, when shall we see progress on the much talked about reforms in the judicial system? What is the current status of the Judge Chikopa Tribunal that was appointed last year? Why do we still have an acting Chief Justice and deputy Chief Justice? When are these structural issues going to be resolved?

To restore confidence the pastoral statement urged that the nation deserves answers and inform to avoid unhealthy speculation and rumours.

Human Rights
‘We demand the government to respect and promote human rights,’ the bishops said.

The statement said the Constitution of Zambia guarantees all people in the country fundamental human rights and freedoms.

Among the rights Zambians enjoy are the right to life, freedom of expression, freedom to association, movement and conscience. The government has therefore an inescapable obligation to promote and respect the human rights of citizens. This obligation also extends to citizens to respect each other’s rights.

The bishops said, ‘Despite having instruments and institutions designed to promote and protect human rights, the human rights situation in Zambia is deteriorating in a manner that is causing worry. Examples include the arbitrary use of power by government officials; intimidation and threats of arrest against leaders and individuals who speak against government; deportations and even threats to our own Catholic priests for sermons seen as critical of government’.

The Constitution making process
The bishops bemoaned that ‘up to now a people driven democratic constitution continues to elude us as a nation’.

‘This’ they said, ‘is in spite of colossal amounts of money and time that have been gobbled and wasted on this exercise. The Patriotic Front (PF), in their pre-September 2011 election campaigns promised the Zambian people a new constitution within ninety days of their accession to power. Today, sixteen months down the line, little progress, if any, seems to have been made on the constitution.’

The bishops said there are public misgivings on the current constitution-making process, in part, due to the following reasons:

a)    The refusal of the current administration to give the constitution-making process a legal framework that would protect the process and the content.

b)     The uncertainty and lack of a roadmap and a predictable timeline on the process has also led to         doubts about the sincerity of government on the constitution. From the time that the Technical             Committee started work on the constitution, several deadlines for completion of the process have been promised and missed. Currently we have a new deadline of 30 June 2013. We hope that this new milestone will be upheld and honoured.

c)       The non-publication of the projected budget for the entire constitution making process: This state         of affairs is unacceptable because it goes against the need for government’s accountability on expenditure. Government needs to exhibit transparency in this matter.

d)     Uncertainty on the referendum question: The people of Zambia deserve better. We need a             categorical assurance of a Referendum by the Executive because that is what the Zambian people         want and this is what they were promised by the current administration.

The need for more consultation
The bishops urged the government to carry everyone along when important decisions are being made.

They said that in the recent past unprecedented government decisions and actions were being made by way of decrees.

However, though the constitution gives powers to the Republican President to make decisions even by decree, it is desirable and sometimes necessary to consult, as this facilitates prior understanding and appreciation of issues and guarantees success at implementation stage, the bishops said.

This was particularly notable they said in the case when government has announced the creation of new political boundaries and governance structures.

Another case of the absence of consultation is in the areas of education. The Education Act governs the government–church relationship in the education sector.

As major stakeholders, the bishops said they are dismayed by the growing tendency for unilateral pronouncements, circulars and directives coming from government functionaries. Some of these directives have far-reaching consequences in the manner Catholics run schools and sometimes border on matters of policy. Government would do well to consult with key local partners and stakeholders on such matters e.g. issues to do with school fees in our schools.

Similarly in the area of health, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) governs the Catholic Church’s relationship with the government.

The bishops said it is disheartening to see major decisions such as the realigning of their medical institutions to new government ministries taken without due consultation.