Introducing the SME TAMANGA Account just for you! Open one today and enjoy a great deal of benefits including debit
card, access to a quick unsecured loan up to the value of K120,000,000, Zero minimum balance & much more.
Business customers could also open and benefit from the business current account & debit card.
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Stanbic’s novel approach creates opportunities for SMEs
Emerging and developing economies have a large number of micro-firms and some large firms, but far fewer
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of high returns, these firms face fundamental problems in accessing finance. Hardly any business in the world
would be where it is today without ever having had to borrow money.
The barriers to finance in developing economies such as Zambia are often due to financial institutions lacking
knowledge of an SME’s credit history, and ability to pay back a loan as well as that SME is likely to lack any
collateral to put down in order to access a loan.
These barriers show that in order to provide access to finance whilst seeking to minimise the risk and highlighting
the potential to the lender requires a new approach to screening and risk evaluation. A reputable Psychometric
testing model has offered Stanbic Bank such a solution. An evaluation of personality, intelligence, and character
can provide insights in to an entrepreneur’s ability, integrity, business skills, intellect and perseverance, can be
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lending to a small minority that possess these indicators, banks can lend to high potential, growth-generating
SMEs, allowing unbanked and informal entrepreneurs to begin building a formal credit history. This has given
Stanbic a breakthrough in profitable lending to the SME market place in several African countries including Kenya,
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So far, across Africa the default rates have been shown to be very low - in fact, much lower than more traditional
methods of assessing creditworthiness.
Early results Stanbic with this solution have proven to be a low cost way to identify SMEs with fair returns to
capital, thereby offering a huge potential to expand lending. Understanding risk enables risk-management, and
therefore allows the provider of the loan the ability to offer risk-based pricing. Due to this, Stanbic have been able
to offer loans for those who pass psychometric testing at far lower interest rates than those typically found on the
market place.
How does it work?
An SME is required to open up a transactional account, styled Tamanga Account or a Business current account with
Stanbic Bank. The Tamanga Account requires a minimum account opening balance of 150,000 ZMK. It carries a
monthly management fee of 50,000 ZMK. It offers a free debit card, a quick and streamlined account opening
process, a discounted fee structure, access to Stanbic’s support and innovation, access to account and transaction
information through Stanbic’s ATM network at conveniently located points. Once you have opened up a Tamanga
account or Business current account and held it for a minimum of 3 months you can apply for Stanbic’s quick loan
with access to this loan being in part determined by the aforementioned psychometric assessment which if you are
approved, funds will be received within 5 working days. You can go in to Stanbic branches in Kitwe and Lusaka,
and sit down with one of their SME Sales Consultants who will take you through the multiple choice Assessment in
English, which takes approximately 30-40 minutes. Quick loans will soon be launched in all branches with Bemba
and Nyanja translations for the Psychometric assessment.
No collateral is required in order to access the loan. Interest rates vary depending on the amount borrowed,
the time you are taking to repay (loans are for a minimum repayment term of 3 months and a maximum term
of 12 months). You will not be charged a penalty for early repayment. The minimum amount you can borrow is
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To open up a Tamanga Account, you may enquire at your nearest Stanbic Branch today.
If you have held a Tamanga Account or Business current account for more than 3 months, please contact Lusaka or
Kitwe branch about your eligibility for a Stanbic ‘Quick Loan’.

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This publication will serve as a vital and useful informative as well as entertaining
resource for business people in Zambia as well as potential investors by discussing
current business and economic issues in Zambia and acting as a platform for
businesses to discuss their latest products, services and developments.
The latest edition of Partners Guide comes at a critical time when Zambia’s investment
potential is growing; the publication is a powerful vehicle that will enhance the visibility
of Zambian businesses to both local and international clients and investors. I have
no doubt that the publication will serve to compliment the efforts of the Zambia
Development Agency in showcasing the potential of the Zambian economy as well as
serve to increase awareness of its diversity.
This year, the Zambian government is aiming to put more money in the pockets of its
citizens by creating more jobs through promotion of additional investment. It is our
belief that this publication will serve as a starting point for creating awareness of the
government message of the agenda of the increase in economic growth. The contents
will enhance opportunities for Zambian businesses as well as other partnerships
and joint ventures with Zambian entrepreneurs. This should invariably result in lower
unemployment levels through job creation, will in turn lead to enhanced wealth
creation, and the ushering of the country into a more prosperous future.
It is my hope, that this and future publications will have a cumulative effect and
encourage the whole of industry to discuss the issues of our time and to find
innovative ways of overcoming any hurdles and challenges they may encounter.
It is my pleasure then, to wish the Kaystech Group success with this and future
editions and look forward to the positive economic impact that this publication will
bring.
Robert K. K. Sichinga
MINISTER OF COMMERCE, TRADE AND INDUSTRY
FOREWORD
I take delight in congratulating the Kaystech Group on
the latest edition of their publication – the ‘Partners
Guide Magazine’.
2

contents
If you have any suggestions for the magazine, are interested in advertising or contributing or simply want to find out more about the solutions offered by the Kaystech Group,
please call +260 211 845 439/+260 971 583 449/+260 977 923 026/+260 977 205 515/+260 977 854 285 or email kaystech@zambia.co.zm
Hon Robert K K Sichinga MP -
Minister of Commerce, Trade and
Industry
Ray Willbern - Chief Editor, Partners
Guide Magazine
George Kaira - Head of Marketing &
PR, Hostels Board of Management
Daniel Mutala - Marketing Manager,
Airtel Money
Alastair Gunn - Organiser, All Party
Parliamentary Group (APPG) for Zambia
and Malawi
Chibamba Kanyama - Director
General, Zambia National Broadcasting
Corporation
Dr Mabel Mandela - Vice Board
Chairperson, Pensions and Insurance
Authority
Tobias Milambo - Leading Insurance
Expert
Kanni Wignaraja - UN Resident
Co-ordinator and UNDP Resident
Representative
Georgina Fekete - UNDP Deputy
Country Director for Programmes
Mingeli Palata - Director of Client
Services, Goman Advertising
Raj Sharma - Managing Director,
Jewel of Africa
Prof. Dickson Mwansa - Vice
Chancellor, Zambian Open University
(ZAOU)
Topsy Sikalinda - Public Relations
Officer, Lusaka Water & Sewerage
Company
James Fraser - Acting General
Manager, Wade Adams
Dube Price Moor - Managing
Director, Ox Hydraulics
2012 Inaugural Partners Guide Zambian Business
Awards 4
Introducing the New Government Complex 5
FNB’s e-wallet extends banking to all Zambians 6
Airtel Money – offering access to insurance
to the uninsured 8
Why Corporate Training isn’t working in Zambia 10
Zambia is going places 13
The Power of Leverage 16
Rebasing the currency 20
The power of Facebook for better or for worse 22
AfriConnect announces the launch of 4G 25
Venture Communications: Whatever it Takes 26
Buying Short Term Insurance 28
Natsave Clocks 40 30
Chimfunshi – a haven for endangered animals 32
Destination Guide: Solwezi 38
Places to visit near Solwezi 42
The future we want 46
A toast to Chipolopolo 48
‘Winning edges’ – Very superstitious? 52
Goman advertising – the brand custodians 55
Be-jewelled this year 57
Capital Fisheries – a fisherman’s friend 60
Love LIV 64
Corruption – What’s the big deal? 66
LG – World Class Shopping Experience in Zambia 68
Distance learning – the educational solution
for the working professional 70
Water is life 73
Piling – building on a solid foundation 74
Ox Hydraulics – They can do it 76
Fire meets its match 78
Things to think about before you visit Zanbia 79
Zambia Fact File 82
Partners Guide
Editor’s Welcome
Muli bwanji?! Muli shani Zambia?!
Welcome to the latest edition of Partners Guide Magazine – the Chipolopolo
victory special brought to you by the Kaystech Group.
The last edition was very well received and some of the feedback we got was
very interesting as some people are saying we are cadres for MMD, whilst others
are calling us PF cadres!
It is a shame that in Zambia many people always have to make some kind of
political interpretation out of everything in the media. A person can barely sneeze
without somebody trying to draw some kind of hidden political meaning from it.
Whilst this is something we have seen improving over the last few months, this
is a cultural change that will take time for people and the media to develop and
adjust to. There has been a system of the media being afraid of those in power and of speaking freely. This
is not the way things should be in a free and fair democratic society. The Universal Declaration of Human
Rights states, "everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom
to hold opinions without interference, and impart information and ideas through any media regardless of
frontiers."
Zambia ranks 89th out of 178 countries in the 2011 Press Freedom Index published by Reporters Without
Borders. Zambia ranks in the same category as Mozambique and Angola as having noticeable problems
with its media. To put this in to perspective, Namibia rates as having a good situation, the 2nd best in
Africa and the 20th best in the world. Other neighbours such as Botswana and Tanzania are classified as
having a satisfactory situation, whilst the DRC, Malawi and Zimbabwe are classified as being in a difficult
situation. So, as things stand, Zambia is not in that bad a situation, but bearing in mind that these ratings
can be looked at by potential investors in assessing the investment climate, improvements must continue.
As long as comments are not defamatory, anyone should feel free to praise or criticise who they like. Even
the best governments in history were not perfect or free from criticism. Likewise, even the most morally
bankrupt regimes the world has ever seen have done things which should be considered worthy of praise.
So, to put everyone out of their suspense, let us reveal who we are cadres for (because apparently everyone
has to be a cadre for someone, right?). We do not have any interest in MMD or PF or any other political party
for that matter. If we have to be cadres for anyone, then let us say that this magazine and the Kaystech
Group as a whole are cadres for Zambia. We are willing to work, advise or help anyone who has a genuine
motive and interest in improving Zambia, regardless of their political affiliation.
Finally, we are delighted to announce the appointment of Kevin Hamafoko as Supply Chain Executive and
are excited about the contribution that he can make to the Group.
We sincerely hope that you can learn from and enjoy this publication.
Thank you for reading. Zikomo kwambiri! Natotela!
Ray Willbern
Chief Editor
Partners Guide
Zambia Business Travel Magazine
Zambian Business Travel Magazine
Distributed In Proflight
March - May 2012
FREE COPY> PUBLISHED QUARTERLY
A toast to
CHIPOLOPOLO
Destination Guide - Solwezi
Why Corporate training
isn’t working
Ray Willbern - Chief Editor
Jonathan Kays - Managing Director
Auxensio Kwezekani Daka - Non-Executive Director
Mirriam Nalweya - Marketing Manager
Kevin Hamafoko - Supply Chain Executive
Gladys Khondowe - Administrative Officer
Masuzyo Mtawali - Design/ Layout/ Photography
Tim Matthews - Photography
Chaza Banda - Photography
Enoch Kavindele - Photography
Zilile Phiri - Photography
Contributors:
3

T
he 2012 inaugural Partners Guide
Zambian Business Awards will
cater for 900 of Zambia’s top
business people. The awards will
act as a platform to showcase the
crème de la crème of Zambian business talent.
It will serve as a way of highlighting achieve-
ment, excellence and innovation in industry in
Zambia.
Sometimes we all work too hard and forget to
take a step back to congratulate our colleagues
and contemporaries for a job well done.
The awards will act as a way to recognise
those in Zambia who are doing their jobs
well in developing their careers, businesses,
industries and the nation at large. The awards
will also serve as a great way to relax with
top notch catering provided and talented and
recognised performers to entertain you as well
as giving you the opportunity to network with
Zambia’s movers and shakers to highlight and
spot business opportunities for the following
year.
The 900 available seats at the event will be re-
served for the judges of the awards, sponsors,
shortlisted nominees, valued clients, suppliers
and partners of the Kaystech Group as well as
invited dignitaries from the public and private
sector. A small number of tickets will be set
aside for public sale at a later date.
The Partners Guide team are at the moment
selecting and whittling down potential suitable
awards categories to trim the number down to
24 awards.
Other ideas were to awards companies and in-
dividuals in different categories such as financial
services, insurance, engineering, construction,
mining, manufacturing, agriculture. communica-
tions, leisure and tourism, education, NGOs,
logistics and retail.
Once we have trimmed the number of awards
down, we will actively be seeking sponsors
for the awards – they could be a great way for
your business or product offering to get noticed
by the people making important business deci-
sions in the country.
Once these sponsors are in place, we will pub-
licise the awards categories and will be actively
seeking nominations. We will require with each
nomination a proposal of why your company/
employee or your nominated recipient deserves
that award.
From here, the Partners Guide team will narrow
down each award to a shortlist of 6 nominees.
Next, the nominees and accompanying propos-
als will be scrutinised by the panel of judges
which will contain some of Zambia’s most
notable captains of industry, with the winners
being announced at the event on Friday 30th
November at The Convention Centre, New
Government Complex, Lusaka.
We are looking for your input and suggestions.
If you are able to offer any suggestions for an
awards category that we haven’t already men-
tioned that we take up and use, then we will
offer your business 50% off in advertising in
the next edition of Partners Guide and provide
you with 2 complimentary free tickets to the
Awards Ceremony.
For your suggestions, any other ideas, please
email kaystech@zambia.co.zm
We will also be looking for main events spon-
sors, sponsors for the awards, anyone wishing
to offer any special deals on potential prizes for
the awards or from anyone else who feel they
may be able to add value to the event in terms
of anything that may be required at the event,
food, drink, catering, advertising or any other
potentially mutually beneficial partnerships.
If you are interested in or able to offer any of
the above, please contact 0971 583 449/ 0977
20 55 15/ 0977 92 30 26/ 0211 845 439 or
email kaystech@zambia.co.zm
2012 inaugural
Zambian Business Awards
The Convention Centre at the New Government Complex, Independence Avenue, Kamwala,
Lusaka on Friday 30th November 2012 will play host to one of the largest gatherings of
influential business decision makers Zambia has ever seen.
Potential awards under consideration at the
moment include:
nn Best Anti-Corruption Policy
nn Best Company to Work for
nn Best Corporate Social Responsibility
policy
nn Best Cost Saving Strategy
nn Best Customer Care
nn Best Environmental Policy
nn Best Marketing Campaign
nn Best New Start-up
nn Best SME
nn Best Value-added in the Manufacturing
Sector
nn Boss of the Year
nn Entrepreneur of the Year (Male)
nn Entrepreneur of the Year (Female)
nn Innovation of the Year
nn Most Attractive Premises
nn Most Effective NGO
nn Most Empowering Company
nn Most Innovative Company
nn Most Valuable Employee
nn Product/ Service of the Year
nn Salesperson/ Marketer of the Year
4

NEW GOVERNMENT COMPLEX THE CONVENTION CENTRE
The Convention Centre at the New Government Complex on
Independence Avenue, Kamwala, Lusaka is truly an exciting
development for Zambia.
Having recently opened its doors to the public, it offers an
international class conferencing and banqueting facility rival-
ling any other in the SADC region.
Boasting a vast car parking space, catering facilities, 4
medium sized conferencing halls, a board room, VIP rooms and
a VIP lounge as well as an impressive 1,200 capacity theatre
and 900 capacity banqueting hall. With quality offerings at
affordable prices, the venue looks set to capture the market
place by storm.
Having already hosted a number of government events as well
as the launch of Emirates Airlines in Zambia, the venue is due
to play host to the 4th annual Zambia International Travel Expo
(ZITE) in April which will further showcase Zambia as a world
travel destination of choice.
The venue will also play host to the eagerly anticipated
inaugural 2012 Partners Guide Zambian Business Awards on
November 30th. Catering for 900 guests, the event has the
potential to be one of the largest gatherings of influential busi-
ness decision makers Zambia has ever seen. The Awards are a
way of recognising achievement, excellence and innovation in
business in Zambia.
With The Convention Centre already attracting such calibre
events, you would think the hotel industry would be worried,
but a Sales Director of an international hotel chain in Lusaka
said to us, “we are actually excited about the developments
at the New Government Complex. If things are done correctly,
then this could be a boost to the whole hotel and tourism
industry in Lusaka.”
The Convention Centre at the New Government Complex
falls under the Hotels Board of Management, a division of
the Ministry of Works and Supply. It also has in its portfolio
a string of lodges around Zambia, in Chipata, Lusaka, Kabwe,
Kasama, Kitwe, Mongu, Mansa and Ndola. These lodges
offer a high level of comfort and a welcoming atmosphere at
some of the best value for money prices available in Zambia
for travel accommodation. On top of this, the lodges also
offer conferencing facilities, catering, outdoor functions and
corporate cocktails.
For more information about how you can access the high
levels of quality and service offered by the Hostels Board at
top value for money prices, please contact:
Head Office
P.O.50435, Lusaka, Zambia
Telephone: 01 251782 Fax: 01 251809
enquiries@zambiahostels.com
By George Kaira - HEAD OF MARKETING & PR, Hostels Board of Management
5

…Mobile money facility bridges the gap
between the banked and the unbanked
Have you ever heard about withdrawing
money from an ATM without using an
ATM card or having an account with a
bank? Well, this is now a reality.
First National Bank (FNB) Zambia has a
first with the introduction of an innovative
mobile phone-based product called eWal-
let. The eWallet allows FNB account hold-
ers to send money to anyone – whether
or not they have a FNB account or ATM
card. All the recipient needs is a mobile
phone on MTN or Airtel to withdraw
money from any FNB ATM.
The eWallet allows people to access
financial services without having to open
a bank account.
How does it work?
The FNB account holder selects the
phone number of the recipient and the
amount to transfer.
The recipient then receives a SMS confir-
mation of the cash deposit in their eWal-
let and has13 days to activate it.
To activate, the receiver dials *130*392#
from their phone which will prompt them
to set a secret five-digit PIN code for se-
curity purposes which is valid for only 30
minutes. A new PIN is obtained for every
withdrawal.
To withdraw money from an ATM point,
the receiver enters their phone number
and PIN, and selects the amount to with-
draw. Besides receiving and withdrawing
money, the recipient can store money on
their phone, purchase airtime, and send or
transfer money.
FNB has 7 branches in Lusaka, Copper-
belt and Southern Provinces, with plans
to add 2 more branches and 40 ATMs by
June 2012. Long-term, they plan to have
20 branches and 80 ATMs throughout
all 10 provinces by December 2015, at a
cost of over 60 billion ZMK.
FNB Zambia CEO, Sarel van Zyl, says high
cell phone penetration in Zambia cre-
ates a timely introduction for the eWallet.
There are approximately six million cell
phone users in Zambia.
“At FNB, in order to experience growth
for the eWallet, we need to emphasise
that the service is for everyone – the
banked and unbanked” van Zyl states.
FNB is aware of the importance of mobile
phone communication in banking. Africa
is the second largest mobile phone
market in the world and one of the fastest
growing.
Africa had over 649 million mobile phone
users in 2011 which is expected to grow
to 738 million by the end of 2012. The
growth rate has risen 30% each year over
the past 10 years.
“The rush in mobile phone communica-
tion in developing countries is a signal for
economic growth. There is almost a 1%
increase in GDP for every 10% increase in
mobile penetration, according to studies
by the World Bank.”
FNB is aware of the challenge of provid-
ing financial services to Zambia’s un-
banked population and the mobile phone
is a solution to this dilemma.
“We acknowledge that the cell phone has
fewer barriers to entry than most technol-
ogies and has successfully penetrated the
Zambian market due to an overwhelming
demand for communication and ease of
use.”
FNB has observed that mobile money
and mobile banking are proving to be
ideal channels to access cash in Africa,
evidenced by the growth the bank is
seeing.
In 2011, for year-on-year growth in mar-
kets other than South Africa, Botswana
recorded 65% of FNB customers using
the service, followed by Namibia and
Zambia at 47% and Swaziland with 11%.
Together, these countries had over 1.2
million cell phone banking transactions
per month, worth about 8.5 billion ZMK.
The government is in support of such
innovations. Sechwayo Nzimba, Acting
Director of Communications at the Minis-
try of Transport, Communications, Works
and Supply, praised FNB for continuously
looking to improve their products, ser-
vices and delivery channels to Zambian
consumers.
“We have seen the importance of in-
novation and breaking from the norm to
differentiate yourselves from your peers,”
Mr. Nzimba said.
The need to transfer money quickly and
safely from one person to another is
important for emerging economies like
Zambia, especially as it does not segre-
gate against the unbanked majority.
At present, no bank charges are appli-
cable to sending or receiving money via
eWallet; standard SMS rates apply when
using one’s cell phone for the service.
FNB’s eWallet extends banking to all Zambians
6

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!
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!

Airtel were the first company to introduce mobile money to
the Zambian market place and are hoping to replicate the huge
success seen in countries like Kenya with this type of service.
What is it?
Airtel Money allows you to load cash to your mobile and pay for
nearly anything. You can store cash on your Airtel mobile and
deposit at your nearest retail outlet. You can use this cash on
your Airtel mobile and deposit at your nearest retail outlet. There
are now more than 4,500 agents across Zambia and this figure
is continuing to rise. You can use Airtel Money for bill payments
like telecoms, electricity, financial services, insurance and more
paying straight from your mobile.
Organisations signed up to this payment system include ZESCO,
Lusaka Water, Debonairs, Bookworld, local councils, ZRA,
i-connect, Microlink, Spar, Zambeef and Mazhandu Buses to
name but a few.
The service has great potential for Zambia. It is thought that
66% of Zambians are unbanked and mobile phone users make
up 67% of the population with Airtel currently holding 4 million
subscribers.
Airtel Money will provide greater access to financial services for
a large proportion of the population. For many Zambians, there
are a vast number of barriers to entry to holding a bank account
such as geographic location, minimum balances and monthly
charges which many in society cannot afford. Also there are
limited ATM and POS networks and access to the Internet is also
limited, preventing the making of online payments.
Innovative Payroll Solutions
In the last edition of Partners Guide, we spoke about how using
Airtel Money offered an innovative payroll solution to companies
where they could pay their workforce by mobile phone. This
solution presented a great time and cost saving, especially in
cases where companies have a large and widespread workforce.
This is often the case with large commercial farms, security
companies and mining corporations and these sectors have seen
many signing up to Airtel Money to pay their workers.
Offering access to insurance to the
uninsured
An area for growth had been identified in partnering with
insurance companies. So far, Airtel Money has partnered with
Madison Insurance, African Life and Professional Life Assurance.
People are now able to pay their insurance premiums by phone
using Airtel Money.
Accessing insurance is a challenge to the unbanked. It makes
it trickier to pay premiums and to collect pay-outs, particularly
in areas outside the major urban centres where insurance
companies are unlikely to have a physical presence. PIA
(Pensions & Insurance Authority) statistics indicate that 95% of
Zambians are uninsured.
There are many different types of insurance that can be of
benefit to all Zambians, regardless of their location, income or
social status. If you consider the fact that it is illegal to operate a
motor vehicle without insurance, it may help to put this challenge
in perspective. The number of vehicles on our roads in Zambia is
increasing - 150 new vehicles enter Zambia each day. 66% of the
population are unbanked. If you bear in mind that there are more
barriers to holding a bank account than to owning a vehicle, then
you have to accept that there are a large number of uninsured
drivers. More than 10% of vehicles in Zambia are thought to be
uninsured.
Not only is this illegal, but it is putting the owners of uninsured
Airtel Money – Offering Access
to Insurance to the Uninsured
Airtel Money was launched in Zambia towards the end of 2011 and
received a phenomenal take up with more than 100,000 customers
subscribing in the first month alone.
8

vehicles at great risk. If people are able to pay insurance
premiums through their mobile phone, they have a means of
being able to pay on time and receive any pay out much faster
than more traditional methods. This may enable people to
get their vehicles back on to the road more quickly, reducing
the amount of time lost in participating in revenue generating
activity.
Offering a life line
Speed of payment on insurance claims is perhaps an even more
critical issue when thinking about life insurance. If someone has
died, they need the money from their loved one’s life insurance
policy in order to pay for funeral expenses if there is a death
benefit or funeral benefit in the policy. If someone is in a rural
area, it is unlikely they will hold a bank account, making it
difficult for the insurer to pay them, and the distance away from
the nearest branch of their insurer may make it difficult for the
recipient of the claim to travel and claim it.
Airtel Money’s ability for people to pay insurance premiums and
receive insurance claims means that people can offer a dignified
funeral for their loved ones, instead of having to worry at an
already distressing time for the family.
Sign up
Insurance companies interested in signing up to Airtel Money’s
service will receive a 30 day trial period and consultation on how
to get the most out of this system. This will involve integrating
systems, linking databases, setting up the account, putting a
prefund in to an e-wallet and incorporating it in to the company’s
existing IT systems. From here, the first batch payments can be
initiated.
The future
Airtel Money has the capability of opening up a vast amount of
opportunities for companies with offerings looking to target the
mass market, particularly if the fact that the majority of the mass
market are unbanked had previously proven to be a challenge.
The advent of mobile money in Zambia signals a shift in how the
mobile telecommunications industry will operate. Currently 60-
70% of business in the Zambian telecommunications industry is
voice based. Within 3-5 years, this will shift more towards data,
value added services, mobile money and corporate services such
as paying clients and suppliers via mobile money transfer.
As time and technology moves on, mobile telecoms operators
will have to be more creative and innovative to keep their client
base and create more value in the market.
Airtel feel that with the introduction of Airtel Money, they have
taken a step in the right direction, but also realise that this is just
the beginning.
Insurance companies interested in signing up to Airtel Money,
please contact
Daniel Mutala – Daniel.Mutala@zm.airtel.com 0978 98 07 78
9

H
is viewpoint is that training
workshops are a frivolity as he
wants people to work hard to
improve the nation, not to be
spending days out of the office enjoying
free lunch. We can see what he is saying
because often, if you ask people what
they remember from a training workshop
they may only be able to tell you what
they had for lunch!
If all people are gaining from workshops
is a free lunch and little else, then of
course why should government and
industry continue to spend valuable
resources and time on sending people
to them? If there have been no tangible
results from training workshops before,
then why should they continue? If you
always do what you always did, you
will always get what you always got
and if all you ever got was something
which was felt to produce little in terms
of visible results, then all you will ever
get is something which produces little
in terms of visible results. So, from this
perspective, President Sata is absolutely
right to want to stop training workshops
in government.
Others may argue that it is not wise
to stop training. They may argue that
the only way for an organisation or
country to improve is to promote a
culture of learning, and they are also
right. A learning society will enable
organisations and the nation at large to
become more competitive. By creating a
learning culture, one in which everyone
is constantly learning and applying their
learning to bring about improvements
you can create a more dynamic and
competitive entity. People will work
smarter, they will innovate and you can
beat your competition, whoever that may
be.
So, if both groups are right, where does
the problem lie and what is the solution?
At KTZ Consulting, using our collective
business experience spanning work with
organisations based on six continents,
we have noticed the level of employee
engagement in Africa is lower than any
other continent. Some may find this
peculiar as they may think that, as Africa
has the highest formal unemployment
rates people should be grateful they have
a job and they may feel that the level of
employee engagement in Africa should
be high.
This couldn’t be further from the truth.
If you ask most people in Zambia why
they work for their employer, their first
answer will almost always be, “so I can
pay my rentals”. If this is the case, which
it is about 80% of the time, it means that
employee’s level of engagement with
their employer is low as they are not
seeing their job as a vehicle to help them
to where they want to be in life. If their
motive for coming to work is so that they
can pay their rentals then their mindset
at work will be, “what can I do today to
avoid being fired?”, instead of, “what can
I do today to be a success and progress
in life?”.
If this is the prevailing mindset then it
doesn’t matter how much training you
provide – that training will never succeed
– that is, unless you seek to change that
mindset first. If you get people to make
the connection between success in the
workplace and success in their personal
lives, then you will start to see results
from training. The only problem is that
most employers don’t know how to do
that, and unfortunately, neither do most
trainers.
So, given the lack of employee
engagement, under the current way that
training is conducted in Zambia, you are
likely to get three responses to training:
Why corporate training
isn’t working in Zambia
Recently, President Michael Sata caused a stir when he said that he wanted to stop all
training workshops in government. At KTZ Consulting, as a training company ourselves, we
can understand Mr Sata’s sentiments.
• In their head they’re saying, “Oh, you
want me to do this training, so I can
make more money for you? Sorry, not
interested.”
However, most staff will simply nod and smile
in acceptance, perhaps with a polite, “Yes
boss.” except, when you observe them at the
training, their eyes are glazed over and they
probably want to start dozing.
• In their head they’re saying, “So you
want me to attend this training and
when I come back my pile of jobs will
have disappeared will it? And when
I come to try to use these new skills,
everyone will be completely in tune? Ha
– you must be a comedian!”
Again, most staff will simply respond in the
same way to the suggestion of training with
a polite, “Yes boss.” When you observe
them during the training, they will probably
be looking at their watch every five minutes
counting down the seconds to lunch or when
they can go home.
• In their head they’re saying, (this
response is most common in managerial
positions, where the level of employee
engagement is usually higher), “How
can they be sending me on this training
when we are facing a crisis? Are they
deliberately setting me up so they can
fire me?”
To this suggestion of training, they are most
likely to respond with a sigh and a resigned
,”OK”, and during the training you might find
them nervously chewing their pencil or tapping
their feet anxiously waiting to finish so they can
go back to work to sort out the problems in their
department.
10

The problem with corporate training
in Zambia is that most trainers do not
consider these reactions to training. They
don’t bother to think of what has come
before the training or what will come
afterwards. This is because training in
Zambia is mainly conducted by unqualified
people and when we say unqualified
people, we don’t mean that the people
conducting training lack qualifications. On
the contrary, they may have PhDs coming
out of their ears, but what we mean is that
they are not qualified to provide soft skills
training in a business setting. Technical
training may be another matter though.
Corporate training Zambia is typically
conducted by three different groups:
§§ Academics brought in from a
University setting
§§ Motivational speakers brought in
from a Church setting
§§ Business trainers brought in from
outside Zambia
All of these groups have their advantages,
but none of them seem to quite hit the
spot and produce results.
Whilst academics have a fantastic technical
and theoretical understanding of the
issues concerned, they tend to teach in
the same way they would at University.
The problem with this is they don’t bear
in mind that at University, people have
paid their own money to be there, so their
level of engagement with the training is
already high. If people have paid, then
they have already seen the benefits that
training will bring them. This is a problem
in a corporate setting as academics often
assume that everyone has the same
mindset of their University students, when
unfortunately, if people haven’t seen
the benefits of the training (which they
invariably haven’t) then this won’t be the
case. Another issue is that the content is
too theoretical. To put this in perspective, if
you think back to when you were learning
to drive, would you have been more
comfortable driving for the first time after
just having read the manual or having a
driving instructor with you to show and
explain to you what to do?
This instruction manual approach is not an
approach that most academics are able to
change as many of them have very little
practical business experience or exposure.
This approach leads to people starting
to understand the theories, but they will
not be sure of how to put them in to
practice. For most people, this approach
will not bring them anything anyway as
they wouldn’t have understood why they
should have paid attention to the training
in the first place as they didn’t see the
benefit of it.
Motivational speakers from a church
setting are fantastic at geeing people up
and even getting them to understand the
benefits of the training. However, where
they fall down is that they have very little
in terms of both theoretical and practical
business knowledge, meaning that your
people may be motivated by the training,
but they won’t know how to use that new
found motivation, meaning this excitement
will only last for a few days before falling
flat.
Looking at the previous two groups, it
may appear that bringing in business
trainers from outside Zambia would be
the best approach although there are a
number of issues with this. Firstly, their
rates are likely to be more expensive
than their Zambian counterparts, even
without taking in to consideration the cost
of flights and accommodation. Secondly,
they may have very little understanding
of Zambian business culture and nuances
and therefore will find it difficult to relate
or empathise with their audience, meaning
you may still achieve little. Thirdly, it is
easy for them not to think of what will
happen after the training and whether or
not you get results because they are back
home enjoying the handsome fee that you
have paid them knowing that any kind of
follow up or support is of little concern
to them because they are hundreds or
thousands of kilometres away.
So what is the solution and how do we
know which trainers are going to get
results?
The problem usually starts when choosing
which supplier to use. Businesses do not
ask the right questions when determining
their training provider.
Although money is not a motivator for
all, it is a motivating factor for many.
Putting more money in your pockets
has been a common theme in Zambia in
recent times. At KTZ we can help to make
your employees see a way to use your
business as a vehicle for achieving what
they want to achieve in their personal lives
and putting more money in everybody’s
pockets in the process. If your employees
begin to see your business as a vehicle for
achieving for what they want to achieve
in their personal lives then you will begin
to see a happier and more motivated
workforce that is more open to change
and increased morale, all of which will be
visible to your customers.
KTZ Consulting specialises in helping
companies to improve their performance
and their profitability. KTZ offer closed
courses focusing specifically on the
needs of your business. The most popular
closed training workshops are in Customer
Care, Change Management, Leadership,
Teambuilding and Sales. KTZ provides
a detailed report of what steps your
business can take to make improvements
following each training workshop.
KTZ are pleased to announce a money
back guarantee on all of its training
courses. If you are not completely satisfied
with any training that KTZ provides then
we would not feel satisfied to take your
money.
• How do you intend to engage our
employees with the company and the
training?
• What have your clients successfully
implemented in to their organisations
following the training?
• What measurable return on investment
have your clients achieved through your
training?
• What are the ways in which you are able
to support us moving forward?
If any training provider struggles or gives
you vague answers to the above questions
then you should expect that their training
is unlikely to be successful or at least offer
very little in terms of value.
KTZ are pleased to
announce a money
back guarantee on all
of its training courses
Typical questions businesses ask when choosing a training provider:
Questions businesses should ask when choosing a training provider:
To find out how KTZ can help to improve your business, please call us on:
+260 211 845 439/+260 971 58 34 49
• Who have you trained before?
• Who have you worked with in our
industry?
• What qualifications do you have?
• What are your charges?
11

T
he group, or
APPG, is a
collection of British
parliamentarians,
both the MPs
and the people who sit in
the House of Lords, called
Peers. It is chaired by a Peer,
Lord Skelmersdale, who first
went to Zambia in the 1960’s,
shortly after independence.
Zambia has had its ups
and downs since then but
everyone is optimistic right
now, and rightly so. The
IMF recently projected an
economic growth rate of 7.7%
in 2012 for Zambia. This is
up from projections of 7.4%
in June 2011, and compared
to a 6.5% growth estimate for
2011.
That optimism is also shown
by the charities and NGOs
we hear from, though they
each have their own areas
where they think more
can still be done. Zambian
representatives will obviously
want to talk up their nation,
but hearing Zambian MPs
from opposing political
parties, MMD’s Dora Siliya
and PF’s Mwansa Kapeya, talk
in unison about the direction
their country is taking was
very encouraging. They were
in London last year to talk
with politicians from around
the Commonwealth about
achieving the Millennium
Development Goals.
It is also there at Ministerial
level when we talk to British
government representatives.
It is encouraging to know
that at the heart of the UK
government, there are people
who see opportunity for the
UK in Zambia.
We met with Henry
Bellingham MP, the Africa
Minister in the UK Foreign
Office who said that his
priority was promoting trade
with Zambia. He had just
visited and described how
much of an opportunity
the UK was missing by not
having a trade representative
on the ground. He was
planning to rectify that and
had identified specific areas
of the economy to target.
In March 2012, we met with
Stephen O’Brien, a Minister
at the Department for
International Development,
DFID. DFID spends almost
500 billion ZMK (£60 million
GBP) each year in Zambia
on projects that tackle health
problems like children dying
from malaria and poor
sanitation, but also on tackling
corruption and promoting
good governance.
Mr O’Brien told us that the
2011 elections were a model
for the whole of Africa and
that the UK had contributed
£1million GBP (8 billion ZMK)
to supporting the elections.
His summary of Zambia was
that although there were
some concerns, the country
has a bright future.
A large part of what the
APPG does is to learn about
the work that the UK is
doing in Zambia in the health
sector. We met with one of
the Permanent Secretaries
appointed by the previous
government, Dr Peter Mwaba
of the Zambian Ministry of
Health, to find out more
about what his Department
is doing. The meeting was
organised by the Zambia UK
Health Workforce Alliance,
an organisation set up by
Lord Crisp, formerly the Chief
Executive of the National
Health Service (NHS), a role
similar to that of Dr Mwaba.
The Zambia UK Health
Workforce Alliance is an
example of the kind of
network that can exist across
the two countries. It has
members in both the UK and
Zambia and exists to support
the Zambian government in
implementing its plans to
develop its health workforce
and health systems. It is
organisations like these that
the APPG wants to meet with
and learn more about. In a
way, the APPG wants to be
a network of its own for UK
and Zambian politicians.
The UK-Zambia relationship
needs to move away from aid
and more towards trade. As
Zambia becomes wealthier,
it should not need to rely on
wealthier countries for aid and
after all, the point of aid is to
help a country get beyond
needing that kind of support.
The DFID budget for Zambia
is projected to fall in the near
future; this is a positive step
to changing the relationship
Zambia is going
placesZambia is going places. That is the consensus from everyone you speak to in the
UK. Being the organiser of the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for Zambia and
Malawi, I get to hear that from some important people.
By Alastair Gunn, Organiser, All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for Zambia and Malawi
The UK-Zambia
relationship needs to
move away from aid and
more towards trade.
13

from that of aid to trade.
It is fair to say that the UK
has been overtaken by China
when it comes to trade.
The Zambia Development
Agency (ZDA) announced
recently that the Zambia-
China Economic and Trade
Cooperation Zone has
attracted a total investment
of nearly $1 billion USD in
its five years of existence.
Britain’s trade relationship
with Zambia is paltry
compared to that. How will
the UK improve its trade
relations with Zambia?
One way could be through a
government agency called UK
Trade and Investment, UKTI.
However, UKTI’s budget
is being cut by the current
government as part of its
plans to deal with the deficit.
It has no presence in Zambia
so it is hard to see how it can
expand into a new country.
Thankfully, there are other
options.
There are some private
organisations, not funded
by the UK government, that
exist to promote trade with
Africa that could play a key
role.
Africa Matters Limited
(AML) is an independent
consultancy set up
by a former Overseas
Development Minister,
Baroness Lynda Chalker.
Having developed contacts
with an impressive range
of African leaders, Baroness
Chalker set up the company
after leaving government in
1997 to provide advice and
assistance to companies
planning to get into or grow
their activities in Sub-Saharan
Africa.
In December 2009, AML
co-organised a UK-Zambia
Investment Forum which
brought together over
200 delegates, including
senior executives of
British companies, British
politicians, and their Zambian
counterparts to discuss
investment opportunities in
Zambia. AML has stated that
it continues to see increasing
interest in Zambia from
international companies and
expects that this trend will
continue.
There is also the Business
Council for Africa (BCA),
which has been around
longer. Founded in 1956,
the BCA sent their Southern
African expert, Dr Jonathan
Lawley, to Zambia in
November 2011 to find out
more about the investment
climate and how to set
up a network for British
businesses in Lusaka.
Dr Lawley knows Zambia
well, having worked in the
country for ten years around
the time of independence. He
believes that Zambia’s recent
progress is remarkable,
with diversification of the
country at long last taking
place and Zambia now a
genuine success story for the
continent.
There is a newly formed
British Chamber in Lusaka
that could play an important
role for the BCA.
However, both these
organisations are small.
Whilst the BCA has a
representative in Zambia,
Africa Matters does not
and both have one person
covering several countries in
Africa including Zambia.
Perhaps the real driver will
have to be Zambia itself. The
new High Commissioner in
the London, His Excellency
Lt. Col. Bizwayo Newton
Nkunika, has made it clear
that is his priority and has
even asked for the Queen
to help boost investment in
Zambia!
H.E. Lt. Col Nkunika is an
experienced diplomat, having
serving Zambia in major
nations like Nigeria, Egypt
and South Africa before
this assignment. It will be
up to him to sell Zambia to
British businesses, work the
networks in London and
keep the pressure on the UK
government to do more.
The next step for the APPG
is to get politicians from the
UK in to Zambia. This may
happen soon and would build
the relationship that already
exists. We are also looking
to help out with an inward
delegation we expect to
happen this year.
I believe we will soon be
seeing a substantial change in
the UK-Zambia relationship.
The two countries share
deep historical ties, but the
relationship has become
almost solely about Britain
giving Zambia aid. As
useful as that money is, and
Zambia certainly continues
to face serious development
problems especially in rural
areas, it is not the basis
of a healthy long-term
relationship.
Both countries need to
move on. With the current
British government looking
to turn the money it is
spending on development
around the world into
trade opportunities, and
with Zambia now one of
the world’s most stable,
developing economies, the
timing is right for that to
happen.
Against that background, the
APPG exists to strengthen
political ties and to keep
British politicians informed
about what is happening
Zambia.
14

O
ur airport transfer bus hooted
at a residential house in the
suburb of Roodepoort, Johan-
nesburg. The initial conclu-
sion by the six-man team
of international media trainers, of which
I was part, was that the bus diverted to
pick up our host from this house. It was
only after the bus had parked in the yard
that we realised it was going to be our
home for the next three days. We were
not impressed about this development.
The institution hosting us could have
been courteous enough to book us in a
lodge instead of a house if saving money
was the intention.
A petite lady later emerged from the
house. She may have noticed that we
were fretful about this destination. As a
way of warming us up, she optimistically
greeted us as we disembarked from the
bus.
‘Welcome to your home, I am Jane’ she
said shaking hands with everyone. She
looked about sixty and weighed slightly
over 50 kilogrammes.
We collected our bags and entered the
two-storey house. It was elegant and
inviting. As we entered, a gentleman, who
appeared to be Jane’s husband saluted
us. He wore a Blackburn Rovers jersey
and the bar at the far corner sported
memorabilia from the English football
club.
‘Do not worry about my Blackburn
jersey,’ remarked the gentleman who im-
mediately introduced himself as George.
‘I am a fan of Blackburn though my wife
supports Arsenal.’
‘I do not support any club,’ responded
Jane, while serving iced-tea. ‘I only sup-
port Arsenal because they beat Black-
burn.’ We all chuckled.
Within less than two minutes of entering
the house, we were beginning to love the
environment. It exuded serenity and an
ambience that had us feel like we were in
our own homes. I love neat and serene
homes. My mind was beginning to adjust
to the environment that would be home
for a couple of days.
As we sipped our tea, George handed us
room keys. ‘Gentlemen,’ he spoke as he
dispensed the last key, ‘this will be your
home for the next three days. Each one
of you will have a room which is self con-
tained with its own satellite TV remote
control. You will notice this house has just
been extended. It has seven rooms. One
of them is taken up by Jane and me. Feel
at home!’
After we had settled down and refreshed
ourselves, we went to the dining room
where we were served a buffet. The food
was fresh and well prepared. We chatted
as plates criss-crossed the well decorated
dining table. Jokes flowed too. One of my
colleagues combined well with Jane. She
may have been a comedian in an Ameri-
can movie. Her ability to know each one
of us by name at first mention excited us.
She immediately made us feel as though
she was our mother. After the desserts,
we volunteered to wash the dishes de-
spite her protests.
After the meal, we went to the bar where
the discussions continued. The task of
entertaining us shifted from Jane to
George. The latter was quite soft spoken
and slower (we understood later he had
suffered from a stroke).
‘I am a retired engineer,’ he started telling
us his story. ‘I spent most of my time
working for the ITT in Livingstone in
Zambia (by then, he had established two
of the visitors came from Zambia). We
used to assemble radios. I later special-
ised in remote control technology and
censors. All the remote technology in this
house, including the security gate, is my
technology. Though I am aging, I still have
interest in developing technology; I am
currently developing a GPS Navigation
system. ’
As others started getting drowsy due
to the alcoholic beverages served at the
bar, I remained attentive. He realised I
was particularly interested in his story
as he continued, ‘We have three children
The Power of Leverage
(Edited excerpt from Achievement Values
for Young Adults)
‘That is truth, Kobbi, unpleasant thought though it be. We do not wish to go on year after
year living slavish lives. Working, working, working! Getting nowhere...nonsense, a man’s
wealth is not in the purse he carries. A fat purse quickly empties if there be no golden
stream to refill it.’ (From the Richest Man in Babylon by George Clason)
By Chibamba Kanyama
DIRECTOR GENERAL - Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation
16

and none of them live with us anymore
because they are working and married.
We are grandparents to five children. This
house had four rooms initially and we
asked ourselves, “What do we do with
the rest of the rooms?” Jane suggested
we could invite people to live with us
and we charge them money for space,
electricity, water and other amenities. If
they wanted food and laundry, we could
charge them money.
George added, ‘I believed Jane’s instinct
and we tried it out. She is a very remark-
able and hospitable person. Perhaps this
was the time her smiles and jolly charac-
ter brought us an income. The whole idea
has proved very successful for us. We
get paid for what we ordinarily offered for
free. We had a choice to open our rooms
to friends and relatives for nothing.’
‘However, we realised that we could
make money through Jane’s special
gift in the kitchen. She enjoys cleaning
rooms though I help her often. She also
enjoys laundry. We are not doing anything
bizarre; the ordinary domestic chores are
giving us a healthy income. After 30 years
of working for other people, now we are
doing something that we adore. Since it
is something we have affection for, we
consider it a job requiring little effort. It
was through this income we expanded
the house and we are now taking more
special visitors like you. Who knows, we
may entice our neighbours to soon lease
their land so that we expand.’
Our home of three days was worth every
penny. For me, George and Jane were
exercising what I term ‘the power of
leverage’. For very little effort, they were
earning a living that they desired. The
couple saw an opportunity around their
own neighbourhood and did not have to
look far for ways of exploiting it. They
responded by applying their skills and
passion to make money in a fashion most
of us would take for granted.
In a world of so many opportunities,
individuals should earn a living very eas-
ily. It is not long ago our grandparents
cut our nails, massaged our
bodies with warm water
and cut our hair generally as
a gesture of kindness. They
performed similar work to
neighbours and strangers.
They received no money
from any of those activi-
ties except for a smile. The
younger generation will
have to think differently.
In order to survive in the
market place, you have no
choice but to apply new
approaches towards survival
and success.
In concluding, I urge you to do the follow-
ing:
First, take practical steps to ensure your
life is progressing well. You must never
be in the same state over a period of
time. Plan your personal develop without
waiting to get old.
Second, take a broader view of life. The
world is a large stage of actors where
everyone should have an equal opportuni-
ty of succeeding. For you to leverage such
opportunities, accommodate criticism.
It takes a lot of courage and effort and
open mindedness to take criticism. This
broad view is important for anticipating
otherwise unanticipated side effects.
Third, expand your capabilities in areas of
life in which you possess the advantage
to have the best results. In 1 Chronicles
4:10, we read: “Jabez cried out to the
God of Israel, ‘Oh, that you would bless
me and enlarge my territory! Let your
hand be with me, and keep me from
harm so that I will be free from pain.’
And God granted his request.”
An embassy was shutting down in Zam-
bia and I was asked to make a presenta-
tion to both local and international staff
that would, over a period of one to three
years, be losing jobs. The biggest worry
by the ambassador was that the low
grade employees such as the house-
workers, the chef and gardener would
be most affected given their low level of
education.
My investigation showed these individu-
als were riding on a high point of lever-
age. I immediately engaged the gardener
to do landscaping work at my residence
over the weekends. I was desperate
for such a person. There was no way
experience obtained at such a reputable
international organisation would count for
nothing.
Fourth, have a critical assessment of
your life and present circumstances. This
assessment involves investigating the
positive or negative behaviours around
you. In addition, you will have to assess
the sources of pressure and imbalance
that put you in a position of advantage or
loss. If poverty has influenced the way
you perceive the world and your own
life, you will have no choice but to take
notice and make a plan to change for the
better. This awareness will help you make
a change to your behaviour as you make
positive improvements.
Fifth, identify opportunities around you.
Whenever you have an advantage, such
as a friend appreciating your unique at-
tributes, ride on that to achieve your goal.
Assess the best way of exploiting those
attributes for value. Look in the right
places. Stand on top of a hill and look
around the world. It will be saying to you,
‘Hey, we have an opportunity; we have
the money for you. What do you offer
us so that we give you this money?’ The
answer lies in the power of leverage.
A C T I O N P O I N T S B Y C A R O L W H I T E
Creating self-motivated carriers of change in a competitive world
C H I B A M B A K A N Y A M A
For Young Adults
They responded by applying their skills
and passion to make money in a fashion
most of us would take for granted.
17

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Introduction
On 23rd January, 2012 the Zambian government approved the
recommendation of the Bank of Zambia to rebase the Zambia
currency. The family of Zambian currency comprises kwacha and
ngwee. Kwacha are bank notes and ngwee coins. One hundred
ngwee (100ng) is equal to one kwacha (K1). Currently the curren-
cy in circulation comprises K50,000, K20,000, K10,000, K5,000,
K1,000, K500, K100, K50 and K20 bank notes. The ngwee coins
have been out of circulation. The lower value denomination of
K500, K100 and K50 can be converted into coins. The K20 will
not be converted into a coin due to its eroded purchasing power
and will be removed from circulation. A child will tell you that
K20 cannot even buy a sweet. If the ngwee is brought back,
the history of Zambian currency will be rewritten for the young
generation. A new note will be introduced to increase Zambians'
purchasing power.
What is rebasing?
Rebasing involves the dividing of the currency. The process
also involves a wider review of the family of currency as well
as enhancing the security features. Rebasing does not change
the value of the currency or its purchasing power. In the case
of rebasing the Zambia currency the existing bank notes will be
divided as shown below:
Existing Currency New Currency
N/A K100
K50,000
K20,000
K10,000
K5,000
K1,000
K50
K20
K10
K5
K1
In other words this means dropping the three zeros.
What does this mean?
If a household was spending K800,000 per month to buy
food, the family will now spend K800. If someone’s salary was
K10,000,000 per month, they will now get K10,000. If rent-
als were K1,500,000 month this will translate into K1,500. A
bus fare of K4,000 will become K4. If someone has savings of
K2,000,000 in their account after rebasing this will be K2,000. A
loan repayment of K1,900,000 per month will become K1,900.
A tax of K3,000,000 will become K3,000. The purchasing power
of K50,000 and K50 will be the same. We can see that there will
not be an inflationary effect arising directly from rebasing. How-
ever mindsets must be changed to get people psychologically
prepared. If someone was charged K5,000,000 they will have to
pay K5,000.
Rebasing the currency will not affect the exchange rate. Equally,
the exchange rate will be divided by 1,000 as illustrated below.
Existing Exchange Rate New Exchange Rate
U.S Dollar
British Pound
Euro
South African Rand
5,000
8,000
6,000
650
5
8
6
0.65
At independence the exchange rate was in the region of 1 ZMK
= £1 GBP. Now, it’s 8,000 ZMK = £1 GBP.
THE CURRENCY
REBASING
By Dr Mabel Mandela
Vice Board Chairperson, Pensions and Insurance
Authority
20

Why Rebase?
Currencies are usually rebased to address the accumulated loss
in their value that undermines its basic function as a store of val-
ue, a unit of measure and a medium of exchange. Loss of value
is typically as a result of high inflation over a period of time. High
denominated currency is normally rebased for economic reasons
such as an improvement in economic conditions or in payment
systems where paper money transactions are reduced signifi-
cantly. Considering the economic strides Zambia has made in the
last few years, it makes sense to rebase the currency. Countries
that have rebased their currency successfully have had low infla-
tion, stable exchange rates and high fiscal discipline and credible
economic policies. Countries which have rebased include Brazil
due to high inflation rates. Ghana rebased in 1993 and Nigeria in
2011 in order to make GDP calculations simpler due to growth in
some sectors of the economy. St Vincent rebased due to low nu-
meracy literacy. Japan rebased as a result of disinflation. Japan’s
strong yen made life difficult for exporters as they became less
price-competitive. Turkey knocked off six zeros as did Russia.
Chile rebased in 1975 because of 362% inflation. In theory rebas-
ing will have no effect on the economy.
Benefits of Rebasing
There will be both economic and social benefits. Econimically,
the kwacha will be easy to convert after it has been rebased. Re-
basing will reduce the cost of doing business and improve both
local and foreign investor confidence in the economy. Rebasing
will make commercial calculations easier and cheaper. Currently,
the national budget is in trillions and many have difficulties
writing this figure numerically. Most Zambians can be referred
to as millionaires but small digits will be easier to deal with and
understand. The tendency of dollarising the local currency will
be reduced. Currency with too many zeros creates problems in
accounting, statistical records, payment systems and cash trans-
actions. Rebasing the currency will increase credibility in the cur-
rency and will mean that accounting software packages will not
have to be customised as most only have values going in to the
millions and rarely go into billions and trillions in a year. The time
taken to input accounting information will also reduce thereby
improving accuracy and reporting times. Rebasing will also allow
the central bank to introduce coins in high denominations thereby
increasing durability. Caution must however be taken that the
value of the material used is not higher than the value of the
coin. Rebasing will also bring about the opportunity to circulate
cash which may have been hoarded in mattresses due to being
obtained through corrupt practices or activities. From this point
of view, many people may view the rebasing of the currency as
being politically motivated.
Rebasing will bring about social benefits in that coins will be
introduced encouraging transfer of technology in the use of vend-
ing machines and parking meters. The fight against corruption
will also be enhanced with the introduction of e-governance as
middlemen or party cadres will not be required in transactions
such as procurement of passports or work permits. The measure
will give the Central Bank space to introduce higher value notes
in line with the economic growth Zambia is expected to achieve
without accommodating the need for an excessive amount of
zeros. Above all, rebasing will enable the Central Bank to review
security features on the bank notes and reduce cases of counter-
feiting which have recently been alleged in the media.
Mechanism
The new currency will be allowed to run side by side with the old
currency for a short period. The introduction period is projected
within the next six months. The old currency will be withdrawn
through commercial banks. At the point of expiry, members of
the public with old currency still in their possession will be able
to exchange at the Bank of Zambia and other designated centres.
Only after an adequate period has elapsed will the old currency
be demonetised and become illegal tender. Cheques written
before the expiring day but redeemed after will be redeemed
as new currency. For example, a cheque of K2,000,000 will be
redeemed as K2,000.
Challenges
In the initial stages rebasing may impact on inflation as it creates
money erosion. People may view the new currency as being
strong in relation to foreign exchange. Therefore it is important
for people to get the picture right from the beginning with a
heavy sensitisation campaign. A sensitisation strategy in vari-
ous media and local languages must be used to reach far-flung
places. Some people will have a perception that their income
has reduced. Some people may view rebasing as a means of
manipulating inflation to reduce the supply of money. With time,
people will get it right. Rebasing will come with a cost of printing
and government may have to borrow outside their budget.
Zambia has introduced new currency before from the era of
UNIP money to MMD money. Financially institutions may face a
challenge in remote parts of the country. The FinMark Trust study
of 2005 revealed that less than 33% of the Zambia adult popula-
tion had access to formalised banking services. The question is,
will the period given to convert be long enough for citizens to
convert the currency they may be holding? Which periods can be
deemed as long enough? Past experience has shown a culture
of doing things at the last minute and hoping for an extension.
The people have been told more money in their pockets - will
rebasing address this? Currently when a Zambian tells you that
something costs K150 they mean K150,000 - the zeros are not
mentioned, therefore removing zero will not pose any difficulties.
Some people refer K 3,500 as K35 thereby ignoring the zeros.
We hope the government will give incentives to banks to set up
mobile banks to facilitate this exercise as people in rural areas
will have to cover long distance to find financial institutions.
Conclusion
Countries have rebased for different reasons like simplifying
transactions or making GDP calculations easier. The main reason
can be attributed to high inflation rates. As Zambia has achieved
GDP growth and given the fact that inflation is now at much
more manageable levels, the time is ripe for rebasing. Some busi-
nesses may have to reprogramme their till machines. As Zambia
is part of the global economy, other countries have to be notified
by the Central Bank about the change as this will have a bearing
on ATM visa transactions.
Dr Mabel Mandela holds a BA in Business Administration with economics
from the University of Zambia, a Masters Degree in Management Studies
from the University of Oxford and a PhD from Sussex University. She has
taught at Copperbelt University and has undertaken a number of consultancy
works. To get in touch, please call +260 975 240 350
email mabel.mandela@gmail.com
21

Y
ou’ll hear people chatting about
it on the street, in buses, in
bars, at the office or at church.
As you’re driving, you’ll even
hear people singing about it on the radio.
Whether you like it or not, Facebook
is here to stay. As a business person,
Facebook can present you with a lot of
problems but it can also open up a lot of
opportunities for your business.
Let’s start with the problems it presents
to your business. A 2007 study in the UK
of 3,500 companies estimated that 233
million hours were lost per month as a
result of wasting time on social network-
ing websites, working out as an average
of two hours of work lost per employee
per day (not including lunch breaks). This
was estimated to be costing the British
economy £130 million GBP (1.04 trillion
ZMK) per day. Bearing in mind that in the
West most people have access to Internet
in their homes (just an estimated 3% of
workers only use Facebook at work in the
UK), as opposed to Zambia where most
people only access the Internet at work,
the time wasted in Zambia by employees
is likely to be even higher. So, why should
you allow your workers to waste your
time and chew your bandwidth when
they are being paid to do a job?
Banning Facebook completely could do
more harm than good as it may cause
your staff to become demotivated. A
recent study in the US indicated that 39%
of 18-24 year olds and 16% of 25-65 year
olds would even consider quitting their
jobs if Facebook was banned.
The TUC (Trade Union Council in the UK)
said that all-out bans were not the answer
and that firms should draw up guidelines
instead. Employers were well within their
rights to stop people using Facebook
during the working day but that staff
should be able to use their time during
lunch breaks to contact friends on social
networking sites.
However, unless you constantly walk
round the office checking your employ-
ees’ PCs then how can you possibly
police such a system?
Kaystech Zambia has the answer. Working
with key software partners in the UK and
US, we are able to offer software that can
police such abuse of time. Not only this,
this software is able to provide a whole
The power of
for better or for worse
Whether you are signed up or not; whether you are a fan or not;
for better or for worse, ‘til death do us part, these days there is no
escaping Facebook.
22

host of other benefits to your business. It
can prevent or trace:
The software is also an invaluable HR and
management tool. It can see how your
employees are communicating with your
customers. It can see who is involved in
outdated, inefficient or ineffective work
practices. It can see how long employees
are working on particular assignments
perhaps indicating training needs or work-
load issues.
How often do you hear that someone is
‘too busy’? Well now there is a way to tell
whether or not they are busy and working
hard or wasting their time on Facebook or
other things or even how long they have
been away from their desk. How often
do we hear stories of employees taking 3
hour lunch breaks when the boss is out of
town? So now, if someone is seen to be
using their time productively they can be
rewarded, if not they can be disciplined.
With such massive advantages you
would think that software like this would
be very expensive. On the contrary, it is
quite inexpensive and due to the protec-
tion it can offer and the increase in pro-
ductivity that it will bring to your organi-
sation, if used correctly, this software can
pay for itself after only one month.
From the above, you may think that Face-
book is killing your organisation, but actu-
ally you can use it to your advantage. We
would even recommend that you even
allocate people in your organisation to be
using Facebook and other social media
regularly during working hours.
Facebook can be harnessed as a way and
means of finding new customers. With
Facebook you can create and host events
and advertise your business by setting
up a corporate Facebook page, group or
even by using Facebook’s own highly
targeted social ads. You can use polls as a
means of market research, you can track
your presence in different locations, you
can attract new talent in to your business
and you can track the demographics of
your customers.
On top of this, if done properly, Facebook
could easily become your most cost
effective marketing tool as most of the
above can be done free of charge.
• Bullying, sexual harassment and
discrimination
• Circulation of abusive and offensive
material
• Accidental and deliberate access to
inappropriate websites
• Disclosure of sensitive company or client
information
• Time wasting
• Commercial sabotage
• Accidental loss of information
• Employees applying for other jobs
• Transfer of sensitive data on to
removable media like flash disks, CDs
and DVDs
• Corrupt practices and activities
If any of these things occur in
your business it could lead to:
• Law suits and employee tribunal costs
• The loss of worker productivity
• Exposure to certain liabilities
• Depletion of your brand image and
reputation
• Loss of competitive advantage and
company secrets
• Employees using company information
for personal gain
To find out how Kaystech Zambia’s
software can save your organisation huge
amounts of time and money and protect
your company secrets and information,
or to find out how you can harness
the power of Facebook as a cheap
and effective way of promoting your
business, please contact +260 211 84 54
39 or 0971 58 34 49 or email kaystech@
zambia.co.zm
Cafe - Bar - Restaurant
chit chat
Tel: 0977 774 481 | 54 Omelo Mumba Rd, Rhodes Park | Email: kevin@chitchat.co.zm
23

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O
n March
21st 2012,
AfriConnect,
Zambia’s
Leading
Internet Service Provider
(ISP) AfriConnect launch of
4G, making the company’s
internet service the fastest in
the country.
AfriConnect’s 4G service is
a low cost service for mass
market which is aimed
at giving more Zambians
access to a resilient, high
speed internet connection.
This fourth generation
WiMAX network is the very
latest technology, designed
to bring high-speed reliable
internet connectivity to
clients at a new low price.
The launch of the 4G service
marks another milestone,
in the company’s vision to
increase its presence on the
Zambian market and provide
the best and fastest internet
connectivity.
4G launched under the “TAKE
YOUR PLACE” campaign is
urging Zambians to take
their place in the digital
global village so that
EVERYONE, EVERYWHERE
is CONNECTED as per the
vision campaign launched
late 2011. “The internet is
a global unifier, everyone
has access to the same
information and it’s time for
Zambians to TAKE THEIR
PLACE.” reiterated Managing
Director AfriConnect, Mark
Bennett.
Mr. Bennett announced the
launch of the 4G service at
the ceremony officiated by
Minister of Communications,
Transport, Works and Supply,
Hon. Yamfwa Mukanga in
Lusaka.
Speaking at the launch,
the Minister commended
AfriConnect for providing
cost effective internet service
to the people of Zambia.
He said the Ministry of
Communications was
happy with the effort that
AfriConnect had put into
its expansion programme,
adding that the provision of
quality access to the internet
was critical to Zambia’s
social and economic growth.
“We believe as government
that provision of quality
internet service to the
Zambian people will play
a cardinal role in our effort
as government to bring
development to all parts
of the country. I welcome
your launch of 4G and look
forward to its social and
developmental impact.
Your slogan of “EVERYONE,
EVERYWHERE CONNECTED”
is one we all hope will come
to fruition.”
The Minister said the
AfriConnect’s 4G service will
offer the best and fastest
connectivity to the internet
for Zambians.
And Mr. Bennett said “The
new service, marketed
under the iConnect brand, is
designed to allow thousands
more Zambians to have
affordable internet access,
getting connected to the
internet for the first time and
allowing them to ‘take their
place’ in the new connected
world.”
He said with rapidly
increasing amounts of
international internet
connectivity coming into
the country via fibre optic
cables, new ways have to be
found of getting that link to
users at high speeds and at
affordable prices.
Since the acquisition of
AfriConnect by Vodacom
Business Africa, the
company has undertaken
major expansion of
its operations through
upgrading of its network,
increasing resilience and
capacity and reaching
new towns and locations
countrywide
Meanwhile, Vodacom
representative Geoff
Hardwick said Zambia
has become the best
performing operation
under the Vodacom group.
“This is attributed to the
team as well the Zambia
as whole. The business
climate is conducive to grow
businesses.”
Mr. Hardwick pledged that
the Vodacom group will
continue to invest in people
with further Investments
of millions into the
network, infrastructure and
operational support.
He further added “the launch
of the 4G service in Zambia
will change the internet
service provision landscape
in Zambia as the new 4G
service is a real economic
driver and will make all
businesses more efficient
and bring down the cost of
doing business.”
AfriConnect announces the launch of the fastest
internet service provision in Zambia -
4G!
25

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I
have often wondered what
results I would get if I carried
out a Mystery Shopper exercise
(pretending to be a client) asking
your employees whether they
think your organisation would win
the Employer of Choice award in the
whole country..
An employer of choice is simply an
organisation that every job seeker
would like to work for because they
believe that the organisation looks
after its employees better than other
organisations.
These are organisations where
people are willing to work for many
years not because they are so
content with their employer that they
would rather remain loyal as that
employer looks after them well. As
a Human Resource Consultancy we
carry out recruitment and selection
on behalf of organisations. When
it comes to placement of Executive
professionals we prefer to headhunt;
it is more effective and more tar-
geted. We always ask the potential
employer the names of companies
that they feel the person they are
looking for must have worked
for. Those companies have what
people perceive to be best practice
work culture. Employees who have
worked there are good perform-
ers and employers are willing to
pay whatever the executive wants
because they know they will get an
excellent return on their investment.
I worked for an employer of choice
early in my career and was told when
I joined the organisation that I will
never struggle to find employment
with their company’s name on my
CV. They were right, I didn’t strug-
gle; once I started looking for work
many companies were keen to talk
to me because I had worked for ‘an
employer of choice’.
There is no rocket science in becom-
ing an employer of choice. People
are complex and it is difficult to un-
derstand what people look for when
identifying an employer of choice.
There are a number of questions that
you must ask yourself in order to fig-
ure out whether your organisation is
an employer of choice. Do you know
if your employees enjoy working for
you? The fact your workers turn up
for work every day on time does not
mean that they enjoy working for
you. Your workers must get to a point
where they are so engaged in their
work that they never notice that it is
lunch time or time to go home. When
they start packing their bags at 15:30
and yet they finish work at 17:00,
then you must know that you have
a problem on your hands and your
employees are probably using your
organisation as a stepping stone.
How do you find out if your employ-
ees enjoy working for you? Carry out
an employee opinion survey with an
external consultant. That is the only
way that your staff will open up and
speak freely about your organisation.
Ask if your employees ‘full potential
is being realised, one of the many
frustrations that employees face is
when their potential is not realised
or recognised. An employer of choice
makes an effort through establishing
a performance management system
to understand each every member
of staff, what they can and cannot
do and how you can fix what can be
fixed. The employee feels wanted,
developmental plans are put in place
and they begin to see a positive long
term relationship with you. Do you
know whether your employees are
planning to stay with your organisa-
tion? Have you ever conducted a
trend analysis to see the average
time that people stay within your
organisation? If not, I suggest you do
something about it.
Do you have a communication
system that is transparent and open?
Are your employees proactive? Does
team spirit thrive amongst your
employees? Do you encourage team-
work by leading by example? Many
organisations struggle to create a
good work life balance. As organisa-
tions chase profits, an unbalanced
employee will not be proactive. I
have witnessed situations where
a newlywed young man just two
weeks into his marriage is informed
that he has to move to Solwezi and
that only single accommodation
is available meaning he is unable
to move with his wife. Would you
honestly expect super performance
from this particular employee? What
you will get is the employee buying
the newspaper everyday so he can
find vacancies, apply and move back
to Lusaka to save his marriage. An
employer of choice ensures that
they create a balance between what
they expect of their employees and
what the families of their employees
expect from them. Are your manag-
ers respected for their leadership and
management styles? Ask yourself if
your employees would recommend
your company as a good place to
work.
Treat your employees as custom-
ers. We are living in a world that
has provided opportunities at your
employees’ fingertips. Using your
bandwidth, employees who are
unhappy will search the web to
discover their value and other job op-
portunities. Avoid losing quality staff
because you are not an employer of
choice. While you are busy trying to
calculate whether you are getting
a return on your investment from
your employees, they are also busy
calculating the same from you. Your
employees are concerned about your
leadership, the organisation, its sta-
bility, the job itself and the rewards
that come with the job.
I want to share with you a word
that most of you have heard, seen,
read but may have never taken any
interest to find out what it means.
That word is UBUNTU. I encourage
organisations to know what UBUNTU
means and to practice it. What
makes us human is what we show
and give to each other. UBUNTU
means kindness, understanding,
compassion, tolerance, empathy, car-
ing, sharing, sensitivity and respect.
When you are being compassionate,
you stop seeing yourself or your
organisation as the centre of the
universe. Whilst we focus on profits
and business growth, let us not
forget the very people that make our
organisations move and grow, let us
remember to practice UBUNTU.
Become an
Employer of Choice
I have often wondered what results I would get if I carried out a Mystery Shopper exer-
cise (pretending to be a client) asking your employees whether they think your organi-
sation would win the Employer of Choice award in the whole country.

MANSA
KASAMA
Bandwidth:2Mbps
Bandwidth:
2Mbps

Buying Short Term
Insurance
L
ike any product or service, an
insurance product has price
determinants that trigger the
pricing level. Any buyer of
insurance must know that
the insurance company is in business of
making profits to its shareholders and
therefore profit constitutes a good share
of the price. For any buyer of insurance it
is important to focus on the risk premium
or the price of the risk they carry. Often,
insurance underwriters would sell a
Mercedes Benz to everyone, i.e. they will
price each similar insurance cover at the
same rate to everyone.
Any prudent buyer of insurance should
always start from the concepts of Risk
Management before venturing into a
discussion with the insurance underwriter
or broker. It is important to be aware of
the risks one faces and the probability
of that risk occurring. Imagine you are
buying a Motor Comprehensive Cover;
what is the probability of your car being
stolen or being involved in an accident?
You might be a Top Executive and only
drive your car to work and back - if it is
long distance, perhaps you fly. Why pay
a high rate when both the probability of
theft and being involved in an accident
is low? The bottom line of insurance
pricing is that the buyer pays a premium
corresponding to the risk they bring to
the insurance pool: The higher the risk
the higher the premium. It is therefore
important to ask the underwriter or
broker how they arrived at that price and
what one can do to reduce the premium.
Insurance is just one of the risk
management tools for managing risks.
On a daily basis we are all engaged
in managing risks. Imagine the alarm
system and gear locks for the cars we
buy; the wall boundaries we build for our
homes, the security guards we employ,
the burglar bars on our windows and the
alarms we all install; and then, insurance
cover. The summation of all these
costs adds up to the total cost of risk
management. If you add all this you may
realise you might be paying more for risk
management.
When one is aware of the other costs
incurring in your own risk management,
these elements can be used in
negotiating a commensurate price for
the insurance one is buying. Each buyer
of insurance brings a different risk to the
insurance pool and the price or rate given
must reflect that. This implies that buyers
of insurance must become aware of the
risks they are exposed to and how much
of that risk they want to retain or transfer
to a third party via insurance, contract or
other means of risk management.
The insurance proposal form, a document
one fills out before buying insurance,
presents information cardinal in
determining the ultimate price one will
pay. It captures information about the
buyer that is used to measure the moral
hazard of that buyer. It also captures
information about the item or subject
matter of insurance. Care must therefore
be given when completing such forms
as the information given could have both
negative and positive implications. It is
therefore important to ask why certain
information is being requested.
An insurance product scope of cover
varies depending on what someone
wants. Just like malaria has varying
strengths and varying levels of treatment,
the diagnosis will highlight the cost of
treating that particular malaria. Even in
insurance, your scope of cover determines
the cover. Motor Full Third Party costs
less than Motor Comprehensive or Motor
Full Third Party Fire & Theft. To get a
better deal, ask the broker or underwriter
the different levels or options available to
suit your budget and the level of cover
you need.
At the end of it all, let your purchasing of
short term insurance be something you
do like any other shopping: ask questions.
In the end, the purchasing of insurance
significantly changes depending on
whether you are dealing with complex or
large purchases; just like it is easy to buy
a tomato but more complex to import a
vehicle from Japan. When one is buying
insurance, your interests must take the
fore if you are to get a better price and
adequate insurance. I hope I have excited
you and removed the myth that buying
insurance is a complex process and
beyond your comprehension!
Buying Short Term
Insurance
By Tobias H Milambo BSc ACII
CHARTERED INSURER
The whole thought of buying insurance is a
daunting task to many. One hot afternoon I sat
in front of a seasoned insurance broker who
complained to me about the high cost of insurance.
This puzzled me as I expected the broker to be
more conversant with insurance pricing; if the
broker could not appreciate insurance pricing then
what about the ordinary buyer?
30

Natsave Clocks 40
F
ollowing Zambia’s
attainment of political
independence in
October 1964, the
government had the
challenge of working toward
economic independence
through developing existing
economic facilities, as well as
establishing new entities.
The National Savings and
Credit Bank is one of the
country’s oldest banks, with its
establishment dating back to
1972.
We caught up with one of the
longest serving employees who
worked at various levels in the
bank over 29 years and nine
months.
This kind of attachment to an
institution undoubtedly comes
with great knowledge, and
Pyokani Muwowo was the
right person to furnish us with
details of the bank’s origins and
progress.
Savings under the General Post
Office
Prior to 1972, Zambia’s postal
service provider, the General
Post office (GPO) had three
divisions comprising the
following:
• Postal
• Telecommunications
• Savings
When some international
institutions floated a proposal
to establish a savings body,
Government felt this was not
relevant and instead decided to
transform the savings division
of the General Post Office
and so it was removed from
mainstream operations, and
treated as an independent
entity.
Consultations and necessary
negotiations commenced
amongst government,
economists and financiers, and
it was agreed that the savings
division once under GPO,
should be transformed into a
bank.
The National Savings and
Credit Bank was born from
the savings division of GPO in
1972, beginning operations in
1973. Now, the bank has 28
branches, 16 rural based and 12
urban based.
The bank was established
to accept deposits, operate
savings schemes, provide loans,
and conduct any other banking
transactions to meet the needs
of customers.
Between 1972 and the
commencement of operations
in 1973, the relevant
groundwork was done and
funding was sourced to facilitate
the operations of the new bank.
The bank was established
following the government’s
realisation of the gap that
existed in the banking sector,
especially in rural areas.
NATSAVE was established for
the purpose of improving rural
financial coverage and the bank
has stuck to this mandate.
The bank intends to open 18
more branches by the end of
2013, mostly in rural locations
including Chavuma and Kalabo.
The separation of the savings
division from the General Post
Office was seen as a way of
guaranteeing dividends for the
Government, as an independent
savings institution was going to
be operating as a business with
profit orientation, thus able to
pay dividends.
EARLY MANAGEMENT
The first Zambian General
Manager to run NATSAVE
was Joe Zaza, formerly of the
Ministry of Finance and National
Planning.
Although the savings division
of the General Post Office had
now been established as a
separate savings bank, there
were still certain conditions
that needed to be fulfilled. It
was a requirement that the
bank should always have an
official from the Postal and
Telecommunications Company
(PTC) to sit on the board.
During the bank’s transition,
NATSAVE was to use the
infrastructure which was
previously owned by the GPO
before it was split. The bank’s
first branch was located within
the Lusaka Main Post Office,
and operations continued
through PTC.
The bank’s Head Office was
in Lusaka but operations were
nationwide through the Post
Office, which had a wider
coverage.
Early Challenges
The bank underwent various
changes in management,
structure and growth,
registering achievements and
facing challenges in different
aspects.
Among the notable challenges,
according to Mr Muwowo, was
under-capitalisation of the bank
in the early days, high labour
turnover and stagnation in the
products offered.
Mr Muwowo also felt the lack
of action by the Government to
repeal certain clauses governing
the bank led to development
challenges. Since the bank was
constituted under an Act of
Parliament, changes to the Act
had to be ratified by Parliament.
This had in some cases slowed
down the implementation of
desired programmes for the
bank.
Early Successes
• The bank successfully
managed the mealie meal
coupons programme
introduced by First
Republican President
Dr Kenneth Kaunda in
the 1980s. Natsave was
responsible for the issuing
of these coupons.
• The bank has over
the years successfully
managed the payment of
small scale farmers under
the Food Reserve Agency
(FRA) maize purchasing
programme. Every year,
the bank pays out billions
of kwacha to small scale
farmers in rural areas and
provincial centres where
it has established its
presence.
• The bank has acquired
assets, with The Savers
House being one of the
first fixed assets. The
Savers House on Lusaka’s
Cairo Road houses the
Northend Branch and the
Head Office. The seven
story building is one of the
bank’s income generators
as some offices have been
leased to other companies.
After a lengthy discussion
on the bank, we asked Mr
Muwowo whether he would
work for the bank if recalled,
and he was quick to respond
that he would love to. He says
the environment at Natsave was
always friendly, with personnel
working as a team.
“It was a great honour for me
to serve the nation during my
many years of working for the
bank. I learnt a lot and I feel I
could still be of service to the
nation through NATSAVE. I’m
humbled to have worked under
different directors for 29 years,
I’m very passionate about the
bank!” said Mr Muwowo.
BRANCH NETWORK
The National savings and Credit
Bank has expanded over the
years since its establishment,
now spotting 28 branches
scattered around the country.
The bank intends to open an
additional 18 branches by the
end of 2013.
The first NATSAVE Branch
opened in 1973 was Lusaka
Main, which was initially located
on the second floor of the main
Post Office on Cairo Road.
THE EARLY DAYS OF NATSAVE
By Cephas Chabu
MANAGING DIRECTOR - National Savings and Credit Bank
32

T
he story of the
Chimfunshi
Wildlife Orphanage
is a heart warming
tale. Situated off
the road between Chingola
and Solwezi, 60 kilometres
west of Chingola, on the
banks of the Kafue River,
just 8 kilometres from
the Congolese border, it
was founded in 1983 by a
British couple, Sheila and
the late David Siddle. The
orphanage is home to over
100 chimpanzees, making it
one of the largest primate
sanctuaries in the world, with
its free-range enclosures
spanning 1,500 acres of
forest, savannah and fruit
groves. The rest of the land at
Chimfunshi is dedicated to a
wildlife preserve, educational
facilities, a tourist lodge
and campsite, offices, the
Siddle family home and land
dedicated to grow some
of the food required by the
chimpanzees.
Chimfunshi is home to a
number of other animals -
antelopes, baboons, monkeys,
tortoises, squirrels, bush
babies, dogs and birds
have all been nursed back
to health at the orphanage,
with perhaps its most
famous resident being Billy
the Hippo. Billy’s size often
intimidates visitors when
they see her plodding along
in their direction. She was
raised in the Siddles’ house
alongside their dogs, her
favourite spot used to be the
leather sofa, where she would
watch TV, until it eventually
collapsed under her weight.
Billy now weighs over 1,500
kilogrammes.
Chimfunshi’s birth was
somewhat accidental. The
orphanage first started in
1983, when the Siddles, who
had no previous experience in
handling chimpanzees took in
a badly injured chimp named
Pal and nursed him back to
health. Since then, Chimfunshi
has grown beyond recognition
and despite the orphanage’s
accidental beginnings, it
has pioneered many of the
modern techniques and
methods used in sanctuaries
around the world and created
a model that has been
replicated across Africa.
When word of Pal’s recovery
spread the Siddles were
inundated with orphaned
chimpanzees. Many were
confiscated from poachers
who attempt to smuggle
infant chimpanzees orphaned
as a result of the bushmeat
ChimfunsA haven for endangered animals
34

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