Zambia Development Agency
Today the profile of development has changed. Many countries are currently not only pursuing development, but are also looking at ways of enhancing it and sustaining it. This means the attainment of development sustainably requires a strategic overseer of the country’s development vision. The creation of Zambia Development Agency (ZDA) fits well in this position to shape Zambia’s development vision.
The Zambia Development Agency (the Agency or ZDA) was established in 2006 by an Act of parliament (ZDA Act, No. 11 of 2006) and became operational in January 2007 after the amalgamation of five statutory bodies that till then operated independently. These institutions were the Export Board of Zambia (EBZ), Small Enterprise Development Board (SEDB), Zambia Export processing Zones Authority (ZEPZA), Zambia Investment Centre (ZIC) and the Zambia Privatisation Agency (ZPA). The Agency undertakes all the services previously carried out by these institutions and other functions as prescribed in the Act.
The aim of the Agency is to foster economic growth and development by promoting trade and investment through an efficient, effective and coordinated private sector led economic development strategy. In totality, the Agency’s mandate is very broad and includes furtherance of the economic development of Zambia by promoting competitiveness in business and subsequently promoting exports from the country.
The government rationalised the new institutional setup under the Ministry of Commerce, Trade and Industry in order to improve upon service delivery by operationalising the concept of one ‘stop-shop.’ The one stop facility is meant, among other matters, to reduce overlaps and time-consuming procedures in the issuance of investment permits, dialogue with the private sector and create confidence in public sector support for business. The Agency also attracts and facilitates inward and after care investment, streamlines bureaucratic procedures and requirements faced by investors. It additionally provides and facilitates support to micro and small business enterprises, promotes and encourages education and skills training so as to increase productivity in business enterprises and promotes greenfield investments (new investments) through joint ventures and partnerships between local and foreign investors, among others.
The Agency is a semi-autonomous institution with its Board of Directors appointed by the Minister of Commerce, Trade and Industry. The Board comprises members of the public and private as well as civil society organisation. The chairperson and vice chairperson are both appointed from the private sector. The Board comprises sixteen (16) members. The organisation has its head office in Lusaka and regional offices in Kitwe, Kasama, Livingstone, Mansa and Mongu.
The Agency’s mission statement to is promote and facilitate investment, trade, competitiveness and the development of Small and Micro Enterprises (SMEs) by providing comprehensive services in a transparent, innovative and efficient manner. The Agency has set strategic goals in its aim to fulfill its mission, drawn from the ZDA Act. These strategic goals are meant to improve the operations of the Agency in it quest to facilitate investment and development in the country. The Agency thus conducts research on a continuous basis on issues relevant commerce, trade and industry and to the general development vision of the country. Ultimately, ZDA looks at ways of attracting and facilitating foreign and domestic investment as well as improving investor confidence in the country so as to make Zambia an attractive final investment destination in the regional, among other go
als.
In order to effectively execute its mandate, fulfill its missions and achieve its vision, ZDA is organised into five (5) divisions. The Investment Promotion and Privatisation Division is the first division. The overall mandate of the Division is to promote Zambia’s investment opportunities locally and to the outside world in order to attract foreign and local investors in different sectors of the economy. Precisely, the Division is responsible for investment promotion, privatisation and establishment of Multi-Facility Economic Zones.
The second division is the Research, Planning and Policy Division. This Division is responsible for conducting comprehensive research relevant to facilitating the mandate of ZDA. The Division is specifically responsible for generating information on all sectors of the economy and advising on policy issues related to industrial development and business environment in the country. It is also responsible for ZDA’s planning process, coordination of all plans to ensure attainment of set objectives.
The Division’s mandate is also extended to ensuring identification, development and management of areas in the Agency in need of information technology to ensure efficient and effective information systems.
The other division is the Micro and Small Enterprise Development Division. The Division is mandated to provide services that stimulate the development of SMEs in the country. These services include training, provision of market information and identification of opportunities for joint ventures with local and foreign partners. The Agency also has the Export Promotion and Market Development Division. The overall mandate of this Division is to promote export and competitive international trade from Zambia and to assist Zambian businesses and entrepreneurs in accessing new markets and expanding existing ones for their products within the region and beyond. The Division’s strategy extends to assisting entrepreneurs to source inputs at competitive rates.
Lastly, it has the Corporate Services Division. The Corporate Service Division is responsible for the provision of corporate support to the overall operations of the Agency. Its main function is to ensure placement of adequate systems and procedures for managing the financial, human and physical resources aimed towards the effective and efficient operations. The Division is also the custodian of the Agency’s assets.
Besides these five Divisions, there is the office of the Director General. This office represents a separate functional part of the Agency. The office has three (3) units that include internal audit, legal and communications and public relations.
Functions
The establishment of the Zambia Development Agency was mainly to give advice to the Minister of Commerce, trade and Industry on matters relating to industry, industry development and productivity, investment, exports of goods and services, operations of multi-facility economic zones and matters relating to micro and small-scale business enterprises. On the request of government, the Agency can as well study market access offers received from trading partners under COMESA, WTO or SADC and advise the government on opportunities and challenges generated. This helps the country to identify its opportunities in the region and plan how it can capture those chances to increase its market share. The Agency also make detailed impact analysis on selected sectors of the economy such as textiles, agriculture, mining, tourism, education, skills training, communication, transport, infrastructure development, automobiles, information technology, chemicals and steel engineering goods, through a multi-disciplinary team.
The Agency is further mandated to establish a database of facilities, human resource and their skills, sources of finance, technology, raw materials, machinery, equipment and supplies with the view to promoting accessibility of these industries. It also develops entrepreneurship skills and a business culture in the citizens of Zambia. It does this by training, facilitating land and empowerment funds acquisition and creating a conducive business environment for MSEs. In this way the Agency promotes and facilitates the development of micro and small business enterprise and other investment promotion strategies in general. The Agency assists in the security from any state institution any permission, exemption, authorisation, license, bonded status, land and any other thing required for the purposes of establishment of operating a business enterprise as well.
The other mandate of the Agency is the undertaking of economic and sector studies and market surveys so as to identity investment opportunities. Such studies are important planning, managing, implementing and controlling the privatisation of state owned enterprises and generally overseeing all aspect of the implementation of privatisation programme. The studies also crucial in monitoring progress of the privatisation programme in Zambia as well as monitoring post privatisation activities to ensure compliances with any agreement entered into for the privatization of any state owned enterprises.
The organisation also develops-multi facility economic zones or facilitate the development of multi-facility economic zones by any investors as well as administering control and regulate multi-facility economic zones and ensure compliance with this act and any other laws relevant to the activities of multi-facility economic zones. In particular, ZDA Monitors and evaluates the activities, performance and development of enterprises operating in multi-facility economic zones and prescribe and enforce measures, for the business or activity carried out within a multi-facility economic zone so as to promote the safety and efficiency of its operations. It further promotes and markets multi-facility economic zones among investors, among numerous other functions.
Today the profile of development has changed. Many countries are currently not only pursuing development, but are also looking at ways of enhancing it and sustaining it. This means the attainment of development sustainably requires a strategic overseer of the country’s development vision. The creation of Zambia Development Agency (ZDA) fits well in this position to shape Zambia’s development vision.
The Zambia Development Agency (the Agency or ZDA) was established in 2006 by an Act of parliament (ZDA Act, No. 11 of 2006) and became operational in January 2007 after the amalgamation of five statutory bodies that till then operated independently. These institutions were the Export Board of Zambia (EBZ), Small Enterprise Development Board (SEDB), Zambia Export processing Zones Authority (ZEPZA), Zambia Investment Centre (ZIC) and the Zambia Privatisation Agency (ZPA). The Agency undertakes all the services previously carried out by these institutions and other functions as prescribed in the Act.
The aim of the Agency is to foster economic growth and development by promoting trade and investment through an efficient, effective and coordinated private sector led economic development strategy. In totality, the Agency’s mandate is very broad and includes furtherance of the economic development of Zambia by promoting competitiveness in business and subsequently promoting exports from the country.
The government rationalised the new institutional setup under the Ministry of Commerce, Trade and Industry in order to improve upon service delivery by operationalising the concept of one ‘stop-shop.’ The one stop facility is meant, among other matters, to reduce overlaps and time-consuming procedures in the issuance of investment permits, dialogue with the private sector and create confidence in public sector support for business. The Agency also attracts and facilitates inward and after care investment, streamlines bureaucratic procedures and requirements faced by investors. It additionally provides and facilitates support to micro and small business enterprises, promotes and encourages education and skills training so as to increase productivity in business enterprises and promotes greenfield investments (new investments) through joint ventures and partnerships between local and foreign investors, among others.
The Agency is a semi-autonomous institution with its Board of Directors appointed by the Minister of Commerce, Trade and Industry. The Board comprises members of the public and private as well as civil society organisation. The chairperson and vice chairperson are both appointed from the private sector. The Board comprises sixteen (16) members. The organisation has its head office in Lusaka and regional offices in Kitwe, Kasama, Livingstone, Mansa and Mongu.
The Agency’s mission statement to is promote and facilitate investment, trade, competitiveness and the development of Small and Micro Enterprises (SMEs) by providing comprehensive services in a transparent, innovative and efficient manner. The Agency has set strategic goals in its aim to fulfill its mission, drawn from the ZDA Act. These strategic goals are meant to improve the operations of the Agency in it quest to facilitate investment and development in the country. The Agency thus conducts research on a continuous basis on issues relevant commerce, trade and industry and to the general development vision of the country. Ultimately, ZDA looks at ways of attracting and facilitating foreign and domestic investment as well as improving investor confidence in the country so as to make Zambia an attractive final investment destination in the regional, among other go
als.In order to effectively execute its mandate, fulfill its missions and achieve its vision, ZDA is organised into five (5) divisions. The Investment Promotion and Privatisation Division is the first division. The overall mandate of the Division is to promote Zambia’s investment opportunities locally and to the outside world in order to attract foreign and local investors in different sectors of the economy. Precisely, the Division is responsible for investment promotion, privatisation and establishment of Multi-Facility Economic Zones.
The second division is the Research, Planning and Policy Division. This Division is responsible for conducting comprehensive research relevant to facilitating the mandate of ZDA. The Division is specifically responsible for generating information on all sectors of the economy and advising on policy issues related to industrial development and business environment in the country. It is also responsible for ZDA’s planning process, coordination of all plans to ensure attainment of set objectives.
The Division’s mandate is also extended to ensuring identification, development and management of areas in the Agency in need of information technology to ensure efficient and effective information systems.
The other division is the Micro and Small Enterprise Development Division. The Division is mandated to provide services that stimulate the development of SMEs in the country. These services include training, provision of market information and identification of opportunities for joint ventures with local and foreign partners. The Agency also has the Export Promotion and Market Development Division. The overall mandate of this Division is to promote export and competitive international trade from Zambia and to assist Zambian businesses and entrepreneurs in accessing new markets and expanding existing ones for their products within the region and beyond. The Division’s strategy extends to assisting entrepreneurs to source inputs at competitive rates.
Lastly, it has the Corporate Services Division. The Corporate Service Division is responsible for the provision of corporate support to the overall operations of the Agency. Its main function is to ensure placement of adequate systems and procedures for managing the financial, human and physical resources aimed towards the effective and efficient operations. The Division is also the custodian of the Agency’s assets.
Besides these five Divisions, there is the office of the Director General. This office represents a separate functional part of the Agency. The office has three (3) units that include internal audit, legal and communications and public relations.
Functions
The establishment of the Zambia Development Agency was mainly to give advice to the Minister of Commerce, trade and Industry on matters relating to industry, industry development and productivity, investment, exports of goods and services, operations of multi-facility economic zones and matters relating to micro and small-scale business enterprises. On the request of government, the Agency can as well study market access offers received from trading partners under COMESA, WTO or SADC and advise the government on opportunities and challenges generated. This helps the country to identify its opportunities in the region and plan how it can capture those chances to increase its market share. The Agency also make detailed impact analysis on selected sectors of the economy such as textiles, agriculture, mining, tourism, education, skills training, communication, transport, infrastructure development, automobiles, information technology, chemicals and steel engineering goods, through a multi-disciplinary team.
The Agency is further mandated to establish a database of facilities, human resource and their skills, sources of finance, technology, raw materials, machinery, equipment and supplies with the view to promoting accessibility of these industries. It also develops entrepreneurship skills and a business culture in the citizens of Zambia. It does this by training, facilitating land and empowerment funds acquisition and creating a conducive business environment for MSEs. In this way the Agency promotes and facilitates the development of micro and small business enterprise and other investment promotion strategies in general. The Agency assists in the security from any state institution any permission, exemption, authorisation, license, bonded status, land and any other thing required for the purposes of establishment of operating a business enterprise as well.
The other mandate of the Agency is the undertaking of economic and sector studies and market surveys so as to identity investment opportunities. Such studies are important planning, managing, implementing and controlling the privatisation of state owned enterprises and generally overseeing all aspect of the implementation of privatisation programme. The studies also crucial in monitoring progress of the privatisation programme in Zambia as well as monitoring post privatisation activities to ensure compliances with any agreement entered into for the privatization of any state owned enterprises.
The organisation also develops-multi facility economic zones or facilitate the development of multi-facility economic zones by any investors as well as administering control and regulate multi-facility economic zones and ensure compliance with this act and any other laws relevant to the activities of multi-facility economic zones. In particular, ZDA Monitors and evaluates the activities, performance and development of enterprises operating in multi-facility economic zones and prescribe and enforce measures, for the business or activity carried out within a multi-facility economic zone so as to promote the safety and efficiency of its operations. It further promotes and markets multi-facility economic zones among investors, among numerous other functions.
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