Export growth bodes well for two-way trade

Kevin Mayhew THE SURGING agricultural sector is beginning to provide a platform for greater Zambian exports and even limited secondary industrial development in manufacturing, according to director of Johannesburg-based Transit Freight Coordinators, Robbie Forbes. Transit has the contract for both Shoprite and Spar to deliver mainly South African wet and dry goods to Zambia where both retail brands have a strong presence in the urban areas. “We have found the infrastructure very good and have experienced no problems with deliveries of perishables, although using Zimbabwe en route can pose problems with breakdowns. Fortunately there is the alternative route through Botswana if we choose to use it,” he said. Zambia is already exporting flowers directly from Lusaka or through Johannesburg and Forbes believes that the emergent secondary industries – should they prove sustainable – could provide southbound freight as they compete for South African markets.