Zambia's Proposed Raw Copper Export Ban

Zambia's Cabinet on April 10 proposed a ban on all raw copper exports. Though details about the ban and its targeted enactment date have not been announced, the proposal has already drawn criticism from Zambia's domestic mining companies and unions as well as foreign mining companies with extensive interests in the country.

The Zambian economy is heavily dependent on copper mining, but due to the terms under which the industry was privatized in the early 2000s, Lusaka's involvement is mainly limited to allowing foreign companies to extract and export raw materials. Recently elected Zambian President Michael Sata made copper mining reform a central part of his 2011 presidential campaign. His government proposed the export ban to compel foreign mining companies to process all raw copper within Zambia. This would create more domestic jobs and revenue, according to Zambian Commerce, Trade and Industry Minister Robert Sichinga.

It is unlikely that the Zambian government will enforce the ban for any significant duration. Zambia's refining capacities are limited, and the country cannot process anywhere near the amount of raw copper it can export. Cutting off exports thus would damage the Zambian economy at least as much as it would foreign mining companies. Instead, Sata's government will use the threat of the ban to push foreign mining companies to comply with new tax laws, as well as to provide technology, boost investment in other economic sectors and fund the industrial infrastructure needed to help the country expand its domestic processing capacity.