Entering the mining value chain: A firm survey from the Copperbelt, Zambia
This policy brief presents findings from a study exploring the characteristics of firms participating in the mining global value chain in Kitwe, a town located in the heart of Zambia's Copperbelt.
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Benshaul-Tolonen-and-Fernandez-Musso-Policy-Brief-January-2025.pdf
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- This policy brief presents findings from a study exploring the characteristics of firms participating in the mining global value chain (GVC) in the town of Kitwe, located in the heart of the Copperbelt in Zambia.
- We surveyed 1,055 firms, with the results showing that 9.1% of them have supplied a mine in the last five years.
- Firms that supply mines are slightly older and more likely to be registered with local authorities. Micro-enterprises (those with fewer than 10 employees) are 10 percentage points less likely to supply a mine.
- Exploring self-reported constraints to entering the mining GVC, we find that competition, low demand from mines, and lack of connections are the main obstacles, followed by bribes and corruption. These results contrast previous literature that has emphasised tax policy, regulation, and credit access.
- Firm representatives uniformly agree that mining firms should procure more goods and services from Zambian firms, and 74% report a desire to be part of the mining global value chain.
- Firms report that bribes and corruption pose an obstacle to transacting with mines. This may render local content policies, a popular policy tool to boost backward linkages, inefficient.