NORTHWEST CHAMBER TAPS INTO DRC MARKET
THIRTYONE Zambian companies from North western province will explore business opportunities in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
The delegation will be led by the North Western Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
Chamber president, Mukumbi Kafuta, said during the send-off ceremony in Solwezi that the main objective of the trade mission was to expose the business community to the vast DRC market.
He said the idea behind the trade mission was to equip the business community on the dos and don’ts of doing business in that country.
Mr Kafuta said DRC was a big market for Zambia in various sectors of the economy.
"We want to expose the business community to the DRC market so that they have an idea of doing business in that country," he said.
He said during the mission, the delegation would have various meetings with government officials as well as the corporate institutions in the vast neighbouring country.
Apart from that, he said, the delegation would also tour some of the companies and look at their operations as well as products.
He was hopeful that the delegation would be able to tap into the DRC market and make business linkages as well as networks.
"It is our hope that after the trade mission, we would have crated tangible links in that country," he added.
The trade mission was being partly sponsored by Kansanshi Mine.
And Kansanshi Mine General Manager Antony Mukutuma said through the trade mission the local companies would now have capacity to penetrate the DRC market.
He said the idea to fetch for new business opportunities in the DRC had the support of the mining company as Zambian firms could not just depend on the local business opportunities.
Mr Mukutuma said Kansanshi Mine will not be there forever hence the need to look ways of sustaining life after mine operations.
"And that is why we are excited after being approached by the Chamber of commerce that they need to look for business opportunities in the neighboring DRC," he said.
He said the other objective of the mission was to attract the Congolose
Zambia.
The General Manager observed that there were a lot of goods and services being offered in Zambia that Congo could require.
He assured the business community of mining company's commitment to supporting initiatives aimed at improving the lives of the local people. market into