Africa-Press – Zambia. Citizens First President Harry Kalaba has asked the government through the Ministry of Mines to compel foreign mining companies to prioritise local companies in awarding supply contracts in order to create jobs and reduce poverty in the copperbelt provinces.
This follows complaints from various mining suppliers that protest that they are no longer getting supply contracts from mining companies that the UPND government has brought back into the country such as the Vedanta owned KCM.
“Foreign mining companies must know that it’s their priority number one to conduct business with local suppliers,” Kalaba said, “giving contracts to local suppliers is the least that can be done to create jobs and reduce poverty since we don’t own the mines.”
Kalaba described as sad that despite Zambia being Africa’s second largest copper producer and top ten producer in the world, Zambians remain poverty ridden even as copper prices escalate to $10,000 per ton on the London Metal Exchange.
“It’s absurd and indescribable that under the UPND government of Mr Hichilema, Zambian suppliers in particular and ordinary Zambians in general are wallowing in poverty and life is 5 times harder today than it was under the previous administration,” said Kalaba.
He said when CF takes over office, ordinary suppliers and other local contractors shall be give priority in supply contracts from the mines.
“We shall engage the mining companies and tell them categorically that giving contracts to locals will be a requirement for them to continue operating in Zambia or else there will be sanctions,” said Kalaba.
Poverty has become endemic in Zambia, even despite being a mineral rich country with huge deposits of copper, cobalt, gold and other minerals.
Complaints have been rising from among Zambians calling for a share of mining contracts they say are mostly going to foreigners.
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