Very optimistic mining sector in Zambia
Mining sector got the best of this year's show By EXHILDA SIAME
IF there's anyone wearing the widest smile after this year's Copperbelt Mining , Agriculture and Commercial Show in Kitwe, it is no doubt the mining fraternity. .
For it is this sector which most assuredly got the best out of the show, which was, for the very first time, a combined agricultural and mining show. The marriage of the two sectors paved way to the presence of more exhibitors, mostly from the mining sector, who are part of the virtual rebirth of the Copperbelt. Show Society Chairperson Bill Osborne said the event attracted 150 exhibitors; 120 locals and up to 30 foreign from last year's 120, forcing the society to allow these business houses to exhibit in marquees for lack of space. More than half of the exhibitors especially those in the marquees were business houses related to mining who have all been following Zambia's privatisation programme with keen interest and readily knew about the completion of the sale of the last assets. 'They are all expectant and optimistic and they all wanted to take advantage of this opportunity to establish business contacts; strike deals and also do some selling which I think they managed to do,' said Mr Osborne. The general feeling was that the show was successful. Mr Paul Anderson, Sales Manager of MES International, a UK -based firm with a branch in Kitwe, has proof of how successful the show was for mine-related firms. His firm - which participated in the Zambia Mining Exhibition (ZAMINEX) which has now merged with the agricultural show - sold goods amounting to $300,000 during the five-day show period from Wednesday to Sunday. MES sold and exhibited items like conveyor belting, fluid drive couplings and belt scrapers to major mining houses like Mopani and Konkola Copper mines. More orders were received from Chilanga and Zambia railways. In his view, this year's show was better than last year's because unlike last year when people were just looking, this year people and companies were doing more than that. 'The previous two shows we have participated in were simply for exhibition purposes but this year, we did more than that - we sold and sold a lot, it was good,' he said. Mr Anderson said business on the Copperbelt was finally coming round with the business fraternity being more optimistic with the privatisation of ZCCM and the prompt payment by the new mining firms. Trentyre was another foreign firm exhibiting at the show and Company representative Charles Van Rensburg said his company had already set base in Lusaka and was now looking at opening another branch in Kitwe in about three months time. Mr Van Rensburg feels Kitwe's central location in the province would be a good base for his firm which deals in heavy duty tyres for big machines used in open pit mining. His impressions of the show appear to have convinced him that there is a lot of potential on the Copperbelt Province. Mines Minister Dr Syamukayumbu Syamujaye who, together with his Agriculture Deputy Minister Yotam Ngulube, toured the stands a day earlier than the President, were all smiles. Said Dr Syamujaye: 'The fact that there are more foreign exhibitors coming shows that there is greater investor confidence in the country and that the privatisation programme was not a waste of time and effort afterall. 'The presence of all these big houses all coming to the country to do business of all kinds in mining shows we took the right step in privatising the mines,' he said. Even President Chiluba seemed quite happy with the level of investor confidence that has returned to the country. He could see nothing but development for the Copperbelt region which he said would soon get back its lost status of being the bread-basket of the country in as far as earning foreign exchange is concerned. 'Household names such as Anglo-American, Billiton, Phelps Dodge, Caledonian Equinox Resources, Katanga Resources and Avmin are all present in the country doing extensive and intensive exploration work with a view to opening new mines,' he said. The show however was not only good for foreign investors, local firms such as Zamefa, as usual, were at the show to try and make the best out of the new and old contacts. Sales manger Henry Banda felt the doors for the Copperbelt were finally wide open and the onus was on business houses to flex their muscles and take advantage of the opportunity. He said even doors for exports were open and he was happy that government was part of the Comesa Free Trade Area group which would make business opportunities even better by October when the agreement finally becomes effective. He only hoped there would be fair play and that a level playing field would be made available for all participating firms when that time came. But this is not to say the show went without any complaints at all. Show Chairman Mr Osborne agrees that there were indeed some complaints from exhibitors, some of them obvious ones like economic reasons, which led to the cancellation of the regulation cattle show. Only two dairy cows were brought to the show this year unlike at past shows where huge numbers of cows are brought to add colour to the event. Because of the cost involved in transporting cattle to the show by dairy farmers, the show was instead replaced by demonstrations and lectures by major farming houses like Boulder farmers, Zambeef and Parmalat. ApolloFarms, farm manager Allan kynoch told President Chiluba during his tour of the stands that dairy farming had become too expensive on the Copperbelt and the country as a whole. He said on and off disease attacks on the cattle; the low prices of milk and beef in the country compared to the expenses involved were making it highly expensive for farmers to survive in this kind of business. He however hoped the new window of hope which had blown through the mining industry would extend to the farming fraternity too. Mr Osborne was optimistic the wind would eventually catch-up with the farmers as evidenced by Barlows which has slightly diversified into providing heavy-duty machinery for farmers too. Agriculture Deputy Minister Colonel Ngulube expressed his disappointment at the low turn-out of farmers whom he thought should have taken advantage of the opportunity to mingle with their colleagues from the mining industry, whom they have a lot in common with. 'Mining and agriculture go together, machines used are usually the same, problems faced are also the same, now Idon't understand why farmers would not want to come to such an event - my ministry will have to investigate this,' he said. But Mr Osborne thought there was no real reason, other than the issue of finances for putting up stands and bringing produces to the event, as the major reason for the farmers' absence. Aside from the farmers, whose turn-out was very low, Mr Osborne mentioned Zesco tariffs as one of the major complaints from the exhibitors and already existing firms in the country. He said most firms felt they were paying rather too much on Zesco tariffs and were hoping something would be done about this. Lack of payment to local suppliers by ZCCM was one other major complaint raised by local investors at the show. Mr Osborne said local investors and business persons needed that money for their working capital to enable them start supplying to the new mining investors. He said without that money, local investors could not supply and they risked being left out of the lists of suppliers. 'And chances are that if they are not registered now, new mining houses will look to outside suppliers and it will be very difficult in the end to reverse this trend,' he said. But President Chiluba assured the investors that there were funds pledged by donors for payment of suppliers and all government was doing was waiting for the donors to fulfill their promise. Aside from that, the show saw 15,000 people from all over the Copperbelt pass through its gates with people being entertained to both music and sport. It was incident free and by yesterday, exhibitors were still packing whatever was left of their merchandise which they had not sold. They had all the reason to take their time, afterall, most of them had sold enough for a month, perhaps six... or even a year. |
