ZAMBIA URGED TO BECOME REGIONAL ECONOMIC GATEWAY
ZAMBIA URGED TO BECOME REGIONAL ECONOMIC GATEWAY
Former Kanchibiya Member of Parliament Sunday Chanda has called for Zambia to position itself as the economic gateway to Southern and Central Africa, saying its strategic geographical location could drive economic growth.
Mr Chanda said Zambia’s eight neighbouring countries provided an opportunity to connect major regional markets and turn its landlocked status into an economic advantage.
“Positioning Zambia as the economic gateway to Southern and Central Africa is not merely an ambition,” Mr Chanda said, describing it as a central pillar of the Growing Zambia Agenda.
He said Zambia had something Singapore possessed in a different form–strategic geography–and could use its location to facilitate regional trade.
“Zambia could potentially become the connective tissue between huge markets,” he said
Mr Chanda proposed making Zambia “the easiest, safest and most efficient country” through which capital, electricity, minerals, agricultural products, manufactured goods, technology and people move.
“Being landlocked” should not, he said, be viewed as a permanent disadvantage.