The Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) will play a critical role in ensuring that Zambia attains the Grow Zambia Agenda target of producing three million metric tonnes of copper a year by 2031, says Chief Investments Officer Mr. Mainga Mukando.
Speaking at the Africa Critical Minerals Conference that started today at Intercontinental Hotel in Lusaka, Mr Mukando said IDC was also focussed on mineral processing, not just mining, to create more value for the country.
He, however, noted that Zambia’s smelters have a combined capacity of only 1.2 million metric tonnes, well below the country’s output targets.
Despite this diminished smelting capacity, Mr Mukando cautioned that unprocessed exports would mean Zambia is “exporting value” out of the country.
He said in order to create more value, IDC had adopted a four-pronged approach:
- IDC is conducting large-scale exploration across over 42 mining tenements held in joint ventures with global partners,
- IDC has established a subsidiary, Industrial Resources Limited, that buys and processes concentrate locally before marketing it internationally,
- IDC is formalising artisanal gold mining, financed toward an eventual domestic refinery.
- IDC plans an MoU with the Democratic Republic of Congo to combine copper and cobalt for Electric Vehicle battery precursor production.
For investors, Mr Mukando pitched partnership over passive ownership. “We are willing to share risk,” he said. “We are willing to take equity, and so we are partners, essentially.”
Through joint ventures, trading partnerships, and pre-financed offtake arrangements, IDC is positioning itself as the anchor investor turning Zambia’s mineral wealth into locally processed, higher-value exports.
