Zambia’s Commerce Permanent Secretary, Kayula Siame, has raised concern over the accessibility of information on trade between her country and Tanzania.
She said that effective communication was required to simplify trade and boost the two countries on the platform of Nakonde One Border Post,
Siame said when the Tanzanian Permanent Secretary for the Ministry of Industry and Trade, Professor Joseph Buchweishaija paid a courtesy call on her in the office.
She observed that the cost of doing business in Tanzania for Zambian logistic companies was too high due to transit charges levied on them and poor road infrastructure.
She hoped for the Tanzanian Government to resolve these challenges in trade as soon as possible.
In response, the counterpart Buchweishaija stated that he will ensure English is added on all documents that are issued in Swahili inoder to avoid trade barriers.
Buchweishaija noted that Tanzanian traders face challenges when acquiring transit permits in Zambia.
He explained that there is no authorization office in Nakonde that assists Tanzanian traders as this facility is only accessible in Lusaka.
The meeting was agreeable that smuggling has been an alarming issue for both countries and as such the two countries should come up with measures to mitigate the vice to attain a smooth trading system.
Furthermore, both countries agreed to share products for trade as a measure to strengthen bilateral trade.
Source