Africa-Press – Zambia. President Hakainde Hichilema is turning to Ghana’s gold management model as Zambia tightens control over its own mineral sector, following a decisive military shutdown of the Kikonge gold rush and the conclusion of the country’s IMF programme.
Ghanaian President John Mahama is expected in Lusaka from February 4 to 6, 2026 for a three-day State Visit at the invitation of President Hichilema, with gold sector governance emerging as a central focus of the bilateral agenda.
The visit comes at a moment when Zambia is rethinking how newly discovered gold deposits are managed, after years in which minerals across Africa have fuelled conflict, illicit trade, and capital flight.
President Hichilema has repeatedly warned that Zambia must avoid what he has described as “rivers of blood” linked to poorly regulated mineral exploitation in other countries.
Speaking last week at State House while receiving diplomats’ credentials, the President said Zambia had deliberately identified Ghana as a benchmark in gold sector reform. He disclosed that a Zambian delegation led by Mines Minister Paul Kabuswe was dispatched to Accra last year to study Ghana’s approach to state participation, reserves accumulation, and regulation of artisanal mining.
Ghana’s experience has drawn attention across the continent. Between 2021 and 2025, the West African state is reported to have increased its gold reserves from about eight tonnes to roughly 35 tonnes, strengthening foreign exchange buffers, stabilising its currency, and generating an estimated US$5 billion through tighter state control and formalisation of the subsector.
Analysts credit reforms that reduced leakages, expanded central bank purchases of domestically produced gold, and curtailed smuggling networks.
Zambia’s renewed interest follows a hard security turn at home. In recent weeks, the Zambia Army deployed troops to Kikonge Gold Mine in Mufumbwe District, shutting down illegal operations and triggering a rapid exodus of miners. Army Commander Geoffrey Choongo Zyeele warned that operators outside the law would face “severe consequences,” framing the operation as a matter of national security and economic sovereignty.
Confirming President Mahama’s visit, acting Foreign Affairs Minister Rodney Sikumba said the trip is a reciprocal engagement following President Hichilema’s State Visit to Ghana in July 2023 and builds on outcomes of the Zambia–Ghana Joint Permanent Commission held in Lusaka in October last year.
He said bilateral talks at State House will focus on mining value addition, agriculture and food security, energy, waste management, trade, and skills development.
President Mahama is also scheduled to address Zambia’s Parliament on February 5, offering a platform to engage legislators on democratic governance and economic cooperation. The visit will conclude with the Zambia–Ghana Business Forum on February 6, aimed at boosting trade and investment within the framework of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
The timing is notable. Zambia has just exited its IMF Extended Credit Facility programme, restoring a measure of fiscal credibility and policy space. With macroeconomic stabilisation largely secured, the administration is now shifting attention to resource governance and value capture, seeking to ensure that minerals contribute to growth rather than disorder.
For investors and policymakers, the message is clear. Zambia is signalling a move away from laissez-faire extraction toward tighter regulation, regional learning, and state-led oversight.
Whether the Ghana model can be adapted to Zambia’s political economy will be tested in the months ahead, as security operations on the ground give way to institutional reforms designed to turn gold into a durable pillar of economic recovery.
© The People’s Brief | Ollus R. Ndomu
For More News And Analysis About Zambia Follow Africa-Press
