Ministry of Commerce, Trade and Industry

GOVERNMENT has finalised plans to re-establish a national airline and proposals will soon be tabled before Cabinet for approval, Communication and Transport Minister Christopher Yaluma has said. Mr Yaluma said Government had exhausted all possible means in as far as re-establishing the national airline was concerned.

 He said the technical committee appointed to oversee the formation of the airline had looked at all possibilities as to whether the Governnent can go it alone or look for a formidable equity partner to work with." We have advanced with our plans to re-establish the national airline and we have exhausted all possible ways, as to whether we go it alone or partner with other airlines and other interested parties but retaining the biggest equity," Mr Yaluma said.In an interview in Lusaka yesterday, Mr Yaluma said discussions on the matter had been concluded and that Government would soon be handing the recommendations to relevant authorities and the Cabinet for possible approval.The minister said Government had had several meetings with a number of airlines and other stakeholders interested in the re-establishment of the Zambian national airline to discuss the way forward.Last year, Mr Yaluma told Parliament that the country would have a national airline in place before the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) General Assembly to be co-hosted by Zambia and Zimbabwe in August, this year.He explained that since that time, Government has been actively consulting and engaging various stakeholders to see how this vision could be realised.Zambia is among the seven countries that do not own or have not designated any as its national airline placing it in the category of extremely poor countries.