from ARNOLD MULENGA in Lusaka, Zambia
Zambia Bureau
LUSAKA, (CAJ News) – ZAMBIA has secured investments worth US$58 million since the government removed tax on importation of digital infrastructure in 2021.
This is according to Felix Mutati, the Minister of Science and Technology, at the ongoing Digital Government Africa Summit the country is hosting.
He said the investment had helped the landlocked country connect itself to all its eight neighbours through fibre optic technology.
Zambia’s neighbours are Angola, Botswana, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Tanzania and Zimbabwe.
“Since the removal of tax on importation of digital equipment, the country has attracted a lot of investment by the private sector,” said Mutati, before mentioni the above figure.
“Tax on digital equipment was scaring investors and forcing them to hold their investments,” he said at the ministerial panel discussion at the summit in Lusaka.
The minister also said the government also realised that tax incentives were crucial to attract investors.
In addition, the government was promoting incentives, innovation and investment in order to enhance more private sector involvement in the Southern Africa country’s economy.
The information and communications technology (ICT) sector has emerged as a key industry as Zambia diversifies its economy from an over-reliance on copper mining.
On the eve that Zambia is hosting for the second year running, Mutati said the ICT sector had grown by 21 percent over the past 12 months.
– CAJ News