The construction of Small and Medium Entrepreneurship (SME) workshops at the Ndola Industrial yard in Zambia has been completed.
According to the Sub-Sahara Gemstone Exchange Industrial Park (SGE) chairperson and president Phesto Musonda, the workshops which consist of eight blocks were currently awaiting electricity connectivity and water supply. “Construction of feeder roads in the facility would start as soon COVID-19 pandemic was contained,” he said.
Also Read: Saldanha Bay industrial Zone in SA signs US $18.3m new investment deals
SMEs in Zambia
Zambia is experiencing rapid economic transformation and SMEs are playing a major role in this transformation. Bank of Zambia in the year 2012, implemented policy changes in the financial sector and one of them was interest caps on commercial banks at 9.75% and 42% for on micro finance institutions. It was observed in the World Bank, 2013 report on Zambia that, by the end of year 2012, financial institutions were able to lend approximately US $480m to SMEs and only US $20m were unsecured and this implies that SMEs in the country would still face a challenge to acquire funding without the right loan security.
The micro small and medium enterprises sector in Zambia has been growing on a phased approach in a sense that, SMEs in the country have always existed in the informal sector and they have overtime been greatly contributing to the economic development of the country. In the country they have been known to employ a large number of people and thus helping to provide income for the households as they are lifted out of poverty and the country continues to recognize that, a clear playing field is vital for the survival and operation of SMEs.
