The Kitwe Chamber of Commerce Trade and Industry charges that calls for value addition to local products will remain unattainable as long as lending institutions refuse to
adjust their financing conditions.
Chamber president Emmanuel Mbambiko says because their high cost of borrowing, commercial banks are making it difficult for entrepreneurs to go into value addition
ZANIS reports that Mr Mambiko in an interview , Wednesday, noted that although government has already provided a conducive environment
for doing business, the cost of financing from commercial banks however is unbearable.
”The financing institutions are the ones withholding the developmental activities in this country, they are too rigid and expensive, I don’t Know if it’s government borrowing that is making them\
remain ridiculously high to make government withdraw from that borrowing window, but they need to come on board otherwise they are not helping the country,” He said
He further accused commercial banks of having formed a cartel to deprive local entrepreneurs of funding by exaggerating their lending rates
which are pegged within on the same range for all banks.
Mr. Mbambiko noted that it was unfortunate that government cannot force banks to relax its lending rates in a liberated economy that
Zambia has adopted.
He expressed hope that the Central Bank will rise to the occasion and advise the commercial banks to relax their lending conditions to boost economic activities.
Mr. Mbambiko, however, commended President Hakainde Hichilema for emphasizing on the need for Zambian entrepreneurs to add value to their product during the just endedTrade Fair in Ndola.
Value addition to locally produced products will enable entrepreneurs and the country at large to increase the economic value of the local products.
During the just ended Trade Fair in Ndola, which was held under the theme: ‘Promoting Value Addition for Sustainable Growth’, President Hakainde Hichilema stressed on the need to add value to the local
products through processing of finished products.
The Mukula tree logs as one of the products that , President Hakainde cited , can be processed instead of exporting it raw when it can be processed and used to make good quality desks locally.