Zambia: Veep Salutes Chinese Investors
The Times of Zambia (Ndola), March 2008
VICE-President, Rupiah Banda, has commended the team of Chinese investors for its plans to establish a mining company in Copperbelt Province.
Mr Banda said plans by the Chinese investors to establish the mining firm was welcome and that the country had continued to enjoy good relations with China.
Mr Banda was speaking when a team of Chinese investors and officials from the Export-Import Bank (EXIM) of China, led by Chinese ambassador to Zambia Li Qiangmin, paid a courtesy call on him at his office in Lusaka yesterday.
He said the cooperation by the two countries had continued to grow and that the Zambian Government attached great importance to the bilateral relations between the two countries.
He said he was happy that the bank decided to accompany EXIM officials to Zambia who had plans of establishing a mine with a view of assessing assistance that could be rendered towards setting up the mine.
And EXIM Bank vice-president, Liu Liange, said the company was in the country with a view of establishing a mine and that China was happy with the relation it had continued to enjoy with Zambia.
Mr Liu said the establishment of the mine would further strengthen the friendship which existed with Zambia and other African countries.
The team later held a closed-door meeting with Mr Banda, which was also attended by Mines Minister Kalombo Mwansa, Energy Minister Kenneth Konga, Bank of Zambia (BoZ) deputy governor Denny Kalyalya and several Government officials.
Meanwhile, Mr Banda has said there is need to always strike a balance between modernity and tradition so that the good old value systems are maintained while embracing progressive modern values.
And Mr Banda has commended Celtel Zambia for embracing Zambian culture in its marketing strategy.
He said for business to be successful in the global market it had to appreciate the cultural content of any particular market segment.
Mr Banda said this during the official launch of a cultural book produced by Celtel Zambia titled Ceremony authored by Tamara Guhra.
He said the neglect of the country's heritage by the young was largely attributed to the assumed overbearing influence of Western cultural value systems.
The Vive-President said it was everyone's duty and responsibility to maintain the country's cultural value systems in the face of competition from elsewhere.
Mr Banda said by producing the book, Celtel Zambia had demonstrated the highest level of corporate responsibility by showing openly respect for cultural values of the country the company was operating in.
The Vice-President also commended the traditional leaders for their openness to allow Celtel produce the book, as it would help publicise the traditions and educate people about Zambia and its cultures.
Celtel Zambia managing director, David Venn, said the company had helped document the Zambian cultural heritage as part of its corporate social responsibility.
Mr Venn said Zambia had a variety of cultures that needed to be told.
"When we visited Zambia on our network expansion programme, we came across a number of diverse cultural practices each unique in its own way.
"As such we wanted to help the Zambian people share what other ethnic groups practice in other parts of the country," he said.
