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Zambia's president urged regional states on Monday to bar a Chinese ship carrying arms to Zimbabwe from entering their waters, saying the shipment could deepen the country's election crisis. Zimbabwe announced a delay on Sunday in a partial recount of votes in March 29 parliamentary elections, extending a deadlock in which the opposition says 10 of its members have been killed and hundreds arrested.

"We have taken what appears to be harsh measures. We attained the HIPC (Highly indebted Poor Countries) completion point and we had all our US$ 7 billion debt written off.....We would rather be remembered as having performed.....Now it does not matter whether you are a minister or not; you will be exposed and prosecuted....We know a good number of cases have been exposed and it appears our opponents are taking advantage (to say) that there is corruption," - Levy Mwanawasa (Daily Mail 21/03/2008)

David Panabantu reckons that he has stumbled on something regarding the DAs that has not crossed anybody's mind. I have always said there's a thin line between poor analytical thought and intellectual dishonesty. I think he has just crossed it, though am not sure from which way: Naturally, the move in this year's 2008 budget undermines the entire DAs between the Zambian Government and the mining companies. But the unknown economic and political risk of altering DAs need not be encountered, as Zambia can still benefit from the DAs. The current legislative practice that is outside the DAs, is that exporters can have 100 per cent direct foreign currency retention of their proceeds according to the directive of the BoZ and not the DAs. There is nothing alarming about remitting foreign currency as all Zambians can do it, but how it is done is defined by the BoZ and not DAs. The DAs do not outline the process how those proceeds are to be remitted, only that the mining companies have to have free and unlimited access to the foreign currency.

Pakistan Embassy in Zambia has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Ministry of Commerce, Zambia for co-operation in enhancing bilateral trade between the two countries. This was stated by Pakistani exporters who recently visited African countries including Zambia, Senegal & Ivory Coast in the delegation of Trade Development Authority (TDAP).

Sacked Chambeshi Smelter Copper Mine workers will not be protected because they did not follow procedure in airing their grievances. Copperbelt Permanent Secretary, Jennifer Musonda said the workers at Chambeshi Smelter should blame themselves for the action taken by management to dismiss them. Mrs. Musonda said the government will not protect unruly behaviour by workers especially [...]

Sen. Barack Obama won his 11th consecutive primary Thursday when Democrats Abroad announced that he had prevailed in their global primary. Even a scientist from Antarctica participated. The Illinois senator and Democratic presidential candidate won 65.6 percent of the expatriate American vote. Rival Hillary Clinton was supported by less than half that number with 32.7 percent. This is the first U.S. primary ever to allow voters to pick their candidate online. About half of the more than 22,000 votes were cast over the internet, says Jody Hedeman Couser, a Democrats Abroad spokeswoman.

President Mwanawasa of Zambia, made a ‘technical stop-over' at the Kotoka International Airport yesterday afternoon. He was on his way to Gambia when he had to make the stop. He was met by President John Agyekum Kufuor when his presidential jet touched down at approximately 12:12pm. The stop-over lasted about one hour. He was accompanied by his wife and daughter and some Ministers of State of Zambia.

Government has started repossessing all infrastructure from licence holders who have not utilised them to enable new investors to take over. The Government will implement this decision next month after giving the organisations a grace period for them to comply with the provisions of the Mines and Minerals Act. President Mwanawasa said this yesterday in a speech read for him by his Vice-President Rupiah Banda at the official opening of the African Mining Congress at Living stone's Zambezi Sun Hotel.