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Dr. Kafula Mubanga, leader of the Development People’s Party (DPP), has urged the government to intensify engagements with fuel suppliers in Angola, Nigeria and Brazil to cushion potential supply disruptions arising from instability in the Middle East.
Mubanga said that while current government measures were effective, the “volatility shock” caused by the conflict in the Middle East required deeper structural adjustments in Zambia’s fuel security strategy.
In a statement issued in Lusaka on Monday, he said sourcing fuel from the Atlantic basin could help Zambia bypass the vulnerable Strait of Hormuz and shield the country from maritime disruptions affecting Middle Eastern supply routes.
Mubanga also called for accelerated implementation of the TAZAMA Multi-Products Pipeline project and the Namibia–Zambia Refined Petroleum Pipeline.
He said the US$500 million modernisation of the Indeni Petroleum Refinery was “a project of national importance,” adding that domestic refining was the only sustainable way to reduce Zambia’s exposure to international refined product price shocks.
Read More: Middle East Crisis: Zambian govt says country has enough fuel stocks to last two months
Mubanga said that given Zambia’s landlocked but “land-linked” status, the government should consider leading a fuel bulk-procurement initiative within the Southern African Development Community (SADC), working alongside Zimbabwe and Malawi.
Such an approach, he said, would allow the region to negotiate better pricing and secure “priority lanes” through the ports of Beira and Dar es Salaam.
“To protect the Kwacha, the Bank of Zambia must establish a dedicated forex window for Oil Marketing Companies,” he said.
He added that the proposal also supported shifting fuel transportation to rail through TAZARA and Zambia Railways to reduce landed costs and improve efficiency.
Mubanga said the stability of the Zambian currency and the cost of living depended on bold steps toward “energy sovereignty” as global market conditions evolve.
“The DPP stands ready to support the administration in implementing these robust defenses to ensure that no Zambian enterprise or household suffers from a deficiency of petroleum products,” he said.
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