US TRADE MISSION TO ZAMBIA WAS HISTORIC

By Ben Kangwa

The first ever United States Trade Mission to Zambia took place from the 25^th – 27^th November, 2012. The Mission whose objective was to deepen trade ties and to explore export opportunities to Zambia was led by US Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade Mr. Francisco Sanchez.

Focus areas of the Mission were targeted towards sectors such as agriculture, energy, transportation, mining and water supply development.

Eleven US companies with hefty business profiles participated in the trade mission as follows:

·         CASE NEW HOLLAND – a world leader in the agricultural and construction equipment businesses. The company is supported by approximately 11,300 dealers in about 170 countries.

·         DOW – a company that combines the power of science and technology. Dow’s diversified industry leading portfolio of speciality chemical, advanced materials, agro-sciences and plastics businesses delivers a broad range of technology based products and solutions to customers in approximately 160 countries and in high growth sectors such as electronics, water, energy, coatings and agriculture.

·         ELECTRO-MOTIVE DIESEL AFRICA (EMD) – a joint venture company between Barloworld and Electro-Motive Diesel Inc, a subsidiary of Progress Rail Services Corporation, a Caterpillar company. The company provides rail and transit customers with industry-leading locomotive products and services, including access to cutting edge diesel and emissions technology. According to their profile, Electro- Motive Diesel, has delivered over 62,000 EMD powered locomotives to 75 countries around the world, 2,600 of which have been delivered in Africa.

·         GENERAL ELECTRIC (GE) - an advanced technology, services and capital company with the scale, resources and expertise to take on the world’s toughest challenges. The company employs over 300,00 employees globally across its businesses, including GE Aviation, GE Energy, GE Healthcare, GE Transportation, GE Capital and GE Home and Business Solutions.

·         GREELEY AND HANSEN – a leader in developing innovative engineering, architectural and management solutions for a wide array of complex water, wastewater, water reuse and solid waste challenges.

·         HYBAS INTERNATIONAL – an export trading company that trades in both commodities and professional services. The Hybas team has over 30 years of combined experience in the international supply chain, export management and logistics. Their base spans several business sectors including industrial, manufacturing, chemical, construction, oil exploration and oilfield services, liquid natural gas and retailers and distributers that use consumer goods.

·         MABEY INC – the company manufactures a broad range of steel pre-engineered panel bridge systems and excavation shoring and propping products.

·         SYMBION - specializes in building turnkey electric power systems, emergency power plants, extra high voltage transmission lines, distribution lines, substations and switchyards.

·         SYNERGICS ENERGY SERVICES - a leading consultant and developer in the areas of energy and infrastructure. The company specializes in hydropower, wind energy, cogeneration, water resource, drilling, irrigation and high speed rail.

·         TRIMBLE – founded in 1978, Trimble is a leading provider of advanced location based solutions that enable professionals in engineering and construction, surveying, agriculture, mapping, public safety, utilities, fleet management, transportation and field services to be more productive by revolutionizing their work processes.

·         WATER SERVICES INC – a company that provides water pumping, transmission, storage, treatment equipment technologies and services to a wide  group of companies and businesses, including oil and gas and mining.

In welcoming, Mr. Sanchez and his delegation that included US Ambassador to Zambia Mr. Mark Storella, Mr. Michael Masserman, Mr. Frank Spector from the US Department of State, Minister of Commerce, Trade and Industry Bob Sichinga, first commended the US Under Secretary at the Department of Commerce for International Trade, Mr. Fransisco Sanchez for leading the first ever trade mission to Zambia.

The one-on-one meetings with local companies took place at the Radisson Blu Hotel in Lusaka.

The following day US delegates from the mining sector traveled to the Copperbelt for meetings and site visits. They visited the Mopani Mine and those thazt remained in Lusaka had meetings with Zesco management and also visited the Kafue Gorge Dam.

Back at the Radisson, Mr. Sichinga commended the United States of America  for its continued development cooperation with Zambia.

“We also appreciate the work of USAID which has operated in Zambia for a considerable length of time. We particularly wish to acknowledge the Africa Growth Opportunity Act (AGOA), a voluntary USA initiative to provide duty-free quota free market access by African countries to the USA. More recently the Millennium Challenge Cooperation (MCC) grant for the water supply and sanitation for Lusaka.

We further appreciate the extension of the Third Country fabric challenge and while appreciating the extension, there remains four challenges which he spelt out as:

·         Extension of the AGOA beyond 2015

·         Lack of investment into the in-country productive capacity required for value addition to commodities in the African countries, Zambia included

·         Sanitary and phyto-sanitary requirements

·         Investment in infrastructure to access raw materials and commodities

·         Material procurement,” he added

Minister Sichinga was also quick to inform Mr. Sanchez on the Zambia Trade and Investment Promotion Mission to six United States cities in June 2012 whose main purpose was to showcase Zambia’s trade and investment opportunities to potential US investors in the area of agriculture, energy, mining, infrastructure and manufacturing.

He said,” Further the mission also enabled match-making between Zambia and the US private sector companies.”

The six cities visited were Los Angeles, Washington DC, Cincinnati, Boston, Houston and Atlanta.

Mr. Sichinga also took time to inform the Under Secretary on updates regarding development projects under relevant sectors in order for deals to be sealed. These included among others the National Grain Storage Project, the supply and assemble of prefabricated modular steel bridges throughout Zambia, to install, operate and maintain temporary power generating units to ease Zambia’s seasonal power shortages.

In responding to the remarks by Minister Sichinga, the US Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade, Fransisco Sanchez said Zambia offered extraordinary opportunities to US companies seeking to introduce their quality products and services, especially to emerging markets.

“Just look at Zambia. In this country there have been 12 straight years of economic growth. It is home to a number of innovative entrepreneurs. There has been some tremendous commercial and retail development.

Zambia has got a growing middle class who are increasingly demanding quality products. So, it makes both business sense and common sense for the US and Zambia to work together and make the most of this promise,” he said

The Under Secretary stated that the US was interested in increasing its trade with Zambia, noting that the country was an attractive place to do business, considering the successes spelt out by the Minister.

“That is why I am here today. I am proud to be leading a trade mission of more than 10 US businesses. We want to do business here. We want to help the people of Zambia meet their ambitions and goals. In turn, this work will benefit the American economy,” he concluded.

The previous day on November 25^th, 2012, Mr. Sanchez had met the American Chamber of Commerce in Zambia (AmCham) at which meeting  AmCham Treasurer David Vosburg had stated that Zambia was a peaceful country with political stability and unparalleled opportunity, both within and around the region.

He had stated that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) had estimated that Zambia would have grown at a rate of 7.7 per cent in 2012, an impressive figure, he had said. He had further noted that not all countries in the region were growing as quickly, but when compared with the US and Euro-Zone, the growth figures were “exceptional” He had noted that there were increasing opportunities in many sectors such as those mentioned by Minister Sichinga – mining, energy, infrastructure, agriculture and services.

David Vosburg went on to say, “ Zambia should not just be looked at as a country of 14 million people, but as a launch-pad into eight bordering countries with over 175 million people. Zambia is not land locked, but rather land linked. With the government’s vision of constructing 8,000 kilometers of new roads over the next five years, Zambia could become a hub of commerce and trade, a Chigaco of Southern Africa.”

As he concluded his remarks, he looked at Mr. Sanchez and members of his delegation and said,” I will leave you with this thought. American businesses have already come and succeeded in Zambia and I encourage your companies to come and do business here as well. Take time over the next two days to assess the risks and opportunities for  yourselves. I hope and fully expect to see you establish yourselves here in Zambia in the next twelve months.”

The writer is Deputy Chief of Mission at the Embassy of the Republic of Zambia in Washington DC