ZAFFICO Plc has formally launched its long-awaited rights issue at a Bell Ringing Ceremony, signalling the company’s transformation from a primary forestry operation into a value-adding manufacturing enterprise.
The company seeks to raise around K1 billion in the rights issue, which is set to be the largest expansion of ZAFFICO’s free float since the company’s listing on the Lusaka Securities Exchange (LuSE) in 2020.
The rights issue offers one new share for every existing share held at a subscription price of K2.53 per share, a price described by Board Chairman Dr. Alvert Ng’andu as not only fair, but “genuinely compelling.”
Existing shareholders are the primary eligible participants, though the offer is renounceable, meaning rights are tradable on LuSE for those who elect not to subscribe. Critically, the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC), ZAFFICO’s majority shareholder with a 63% stake has made a deliberate decision to follow only a portion of its entitlement, freeing up a significant allocation for institutional investors, retail investors and ordinary Zambians.
IDC CEO Mr. Cornwell Muleya described the rights issue as far more than a routine capital market event, calling it “a direct manifestation of Zambia’s industrialisation agenda.”
“The fruits of this industrialisation agenda should not belong solely to the state,” Mr. Muleya said. “They should belong to the people of Zambia.”
ZAFFICO aims to deploy the capital raised across three strategic pillars: completing the Particle Board Plant in 2027 to overturn Zambia’s US$160 million annual particle board imports; expanding plantations from 62,000 to 100,000 hectares by 2028; and restructuring operations to align costs and staffing with ZAFFICO’s identity as a manufacturing business.
The company recorded revenue of K460 million in the 2025 financial year, with a gross profit of K288 million representing a gross margin of about 63% and an asset base exceeding K400 million. Its financial projections, to be detailed in the formal offer document, point to revenue growth from K460 million in 2025 to about K1.8 billion by 2029, a compound annual growth rate of around 40%, according to Managing Director Mr. Mundia Mundia.
LuSE CEO Mr. Nicholas Kabaso said this opportunity is genuinely accessible to most Zambians and not reserved for large institutions alone.
