BRITISH High Commissioner to Zambia, Nicholas Woolley, says he is extremely impressed with the agility exhibited by the teams at Zambia Sugar Plc.

Specifically, High Commissioner Woolley cited the use of our advanced technology, including new farming systems, drip, centre pivot and the latest short furrow irrigation systems.

He also commended our use of drones to conduct crop surveillance, assessing levels of stress on the crop in the different fields, as well as in the application of fertilizers and chemical spraying, to mitigate drift.

Speaking to the media after a tour of the 28,000Ha Estate, Tuesday morning, the British Envoy hailed us for being a trailblazer in innovation in agriculture.

He commended our staff, as well as the Illovo Sugar Africa and ABF colleagues, and acknowledged that Zambia Sugar was one of the few companies whose value chain impacts every sector of the economy.

High Commissioner Woolley further commended our financial performance over the past few years.

We are listed on the Lusaka Securities Exchange (LuSE) and have a market capitalization of over K11 billion. We were thrilled to pay out dividends of over K1 billion to our over 3,400 shareholders in 2023, and we were one of the highest taxpayers at K270 million in the 2023 Financial Year.

Speaking at the same event, our Managing Director, Oswald Magwenzi, expressed confidence that the Company would navigate the strong headwinds in terms of adverse weather, power challenges, rising costs, that were being experienced in the year and would ensure Zambia Sugar continues to thrive. He also reaffirmed Zambia Sugar’s commitment to securing the jobs of the over 7,200 direct employees.

During the British High Commissioner’s visit to Zambia Sugar, we were delighted to host him for dinner at our Nakambala Estate where he met with the Nakambala Leadership Team, including our Managing Director, Oswald Magwenzi and some members of the agricultural team.