SILUMESI MALUMO writes
GOVERNMENT is expected to sign a Statutory Instrument (SI) that will support the extension of Mukula transit deal between Zambia and Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
Lands and Natural Resources Minister, Jean Kapata, said the deal came to an end in June this year and the DRC government had written to Government for extension.
The a deal is for Mukula logs to transit from DRC through Zambia to various market destinations.
“The Congolese government has since written to us to reconsider extending the deal because they have not completed transiting the consignment,” she added.
She said in an interview yesterday that both the Zambian and the Congolese government had agreed to extend the deal for a year.
Ms Kapata said in the meantime Government needed to sign another SI to support the extension of the deal.
“We agreed that the deal can be extended for another one year but we need to have an SI to support it. So for now we are in the process of coming up with an SI and once we do that then the deal will start,” she said.
Recently, Government through the Zambia Revenue Authority (ZRA) collected about K2 million through inspections and escort fees for trucks carrying Mukula logs transiting through Zambia.
