ZCCZ introduction
1、Brief introduction of ZCCZ
Zambia China Economic & Trade Cooperation Zone (abbreviated as ZCCZ) is the first economic and trade cooperation zone abroad and also the first multi-facility economic zone approved by Zambian government. ZCCZ was established in order to implement one of the eight measures “Establish three to five economic and trade cooperation zones in Africa” pledge
d at Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation in 2006. Instructed by the Chinese Ministry of Commerce, China Nonferrous Metal Mining (Group) Co. Ltd (abbreviated as CNMC) has been in charge of the development, construction and management of ZCCZ since then. On January 16, 2007, China Nonferrous Metals Group registered and established Zambia China Economic and Trade Cooperation Zone Development Co., Ltd. in Zambia, which is responsible for the infrastructure construction and operation management of the economic and trade cooperation zone. On February 4, 2007, when President Hu Jintao visited Zambia, he and Zambia's President Mwanawasa personally unveiled the cooperation zone. President Hu Jintao wrote the inscription " China and Zambia cooperate for common development " for CNMC. On September 1, 2018, when President Xi Jinping met with Zambian President Lungu in the Great Hall of the People, he stated that the two countries should rely on the construction of the park to deepen mutually beneficial cooperation between the two countries and expand cultural exchanges.
2、The planning and construction progress
ZCCZ is composed of two multi-facility economic zones. One is the Chambishi MFEZ in Kalulushi, Copperbelt Province. The other is Lusaka East MFEZ near Lusaka International Airport. Chambishi MFEZ is located in the central of the Copper Belt Province of Zambia，the initial planned area for development is 11.58 square kilometers，with non-ferrous metal industry as the main industry, Based on copper-cobalt mining and copper-cobalt smelting, which will be built into a comprehensive industrial park focusing on non-ferrous metal industry by extending to the non-ferrous metal processing industrial chain, and properly developing supporting and service industries. At present, there are more than 50 non-ferrous metal processing industry projects with NFC Africa Mining, Chambishi copper smelter and Sino metal leach as the core, which basically form a complete industrial chain and industrial cluster. With 5.7 square kilometers of planning area, Lusaka East MFEZ will be based in the heart of southern Africa's strategic location which is in Zambia. Lusaka East MFEZ will give full play to the advantage of transportation hub in southern Africa supported by the capital and its international airport of Lusaka, orient to Zambia and Southern Africa market, and focus on developing trade and business, logistics, processing, real estate and other industries in order to build a modern airport industrial park with free trade area as its main function. At present, more than ten enterprises were promoted, the main industrial types are light industrial products production and processing, food processing, building materials processing and trade, pharmaceutical production, logistics services and other industries. Since the two heads of state unveiled ZCCZ in 2007, CNMC has actively implemented the important instructions on strengthening the work of Africa, and vigorously promoted the development and construction of ZCCZ, and achieved remarkable results. ZCCZ has become a new symbol of the friendship between China and Zambia following the "TAZARA Railway". After more than 10 years of development, by the end of May 2021, ZCCZ has established a total of 76 registered enterprises (57 in Chambishi MFEZ and 19 in Lusaka East MFEZ). The cumulative industrial investment of the two Zones is about 2 billion US dollars, and the direct investment of ZCCZ is about 196 million US dollars, the accumulated sales revenue of enterprises exceeds 19 billion US dollars. By the end of May 2021, enterprises created more than 9600 jobs for local employees. ZCCZ has become one of the best, fastest-growing, most standardized, and most environmentally friendly overseas MFEZs.
3. Roles played by ZCCZ
ZCCZ enables Zambia's rich copper and cobalt mineral resources to be exploited more effectively, with extending the processing depth of basic resources, in an effort to enter the international market, and promotes Zambia's economic development; Chambishi copper smelter, which can solve the shortage of copper raw materials containing 300,000 metric tons of copper, effectively promotes the " Industrial-capacity cooperation " between Zambia and China, and " contributed to the reassurance of national strategic resources as well as economic security "; ZCCZ has so far harboured more than 70 Chinese enterprises entering Zambia, providing support for a large number of Chinese enterprises as an overseas investment platform to help them avoid the risks of lacking cross-border business experience due to unfamiliarity with the foreign environment. It is also conducive to creating sound conditions for the strengthening of industrial clusters and promote economic scale effect. By offering them professional investment service, simplified investment procedures, speeded investment process, it would help zone enterprises avoid and play a role as the public investment platform for Chinese enterprises in Zambia, which has promoted the depth and breadth of development for the "Belt and Road" initiative.
4. Future development plan of ZCCZ
The next move for the development of ZCCZ will respond positively to the spirit of the Beijing Summit of FOCAC, focusing on the guidelines of the government of China on "Industrial Promotion" from the " Eight Major Initiatives ", in particular with " build and upgrade a number of economic and trade cooperation zones in Africa. ", and implementing the instructions prompted by President Lungu and President Xi Jinping during their meeting: “based on the construction of economic cooperation zones, the two countries should deepen mutually beneficial cooperation, expand people-to-people exchanges”. We actively seek the transformation and upgrading of ZCCZ, adhere to corporation priority, government guidance, market-oriented operation, the principle of achieving shared growth through discussion and collaboration, and follow the general principles of making progress while working to keep performance stable and make unremitting efforts, making ZCCZ a business card for open interaction and win-win cooperation among between Central and Southern Africa and China.
