Personal Profile
Dr David Chewe, Fund Manager A positive, proactive results-driven executive and director with a highly successful background in the achievement of traceable profitable business growth through creation and execution of business development, sales and marketing, risk & operations management strategies. A chartered banker with wide experience working in private and public institutions including international commercial banks, public pension funds and investment funds.
Company Profile
The Zambia Export Development Fund Business Overview:
The Zambia Export Development Fund (ZEDEF) was created by a memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the Zambian government and the European Union. The program is managed by the Zambia Development Agency (ZDA). The program’s main objective is for the fund to contribute to increase in national GDP and employment creation in target sectors.
Its mission is to mobilise and provide low cost working capital finance to non-traditional exporters (NTEs) through a viable and sustainable revolving fund.
The Fund is able to provide short-term low cost trade finance to exporters of non traditional export products at concessional interest rates.
This facility is only available to exporters or export ready entrepreneurs in non-traditional exports whose majority shareholding is Zambian. ZEDEF uses both group and individual borrowers lending models to provide working capital financing needs to its clients. It has a robust governance framework and an independent Board of Directors drawn from private sector, the government and Zambia Development Agency. One of the initiatives the Board identified is to build strategic partnerships with institutions and organisations that share similar values with ZEDEF. ZEDEF recognises that credit, insurance, and trade finance tools are required for exporters to expand their international sales. The Fund therefore, seeks to ensure that apart from direct export credit finance, exporters also need export credit insurance, cross-border equipment financing, political risk insurance, international leasing, and other services. In this regard, ZEDEF seeks to partner with firms and organisations specialising in trade credit and insurance which helps exporters extend competitive payment terms abroad while protecting their foreign receivables against default risks.
Expecting Business with India & other countries:
The Fund currently supports Zambia’s non-traditional sectors such as floriculture, gemstones, handicrafts and curios, leather and leather products, primary agriculture, refined and processed foods, and wood and wood products. With the improved competitive position of Zambia and increased demand for funding the current available funds are not sufficient to support client needs. Our objective is to implement partnership activities that help to grow the Zambian (NTE) exporter base, including increased availability of financing resources that help exporters.
We hereby seek strategic partners to provide additional US$2,000,000-5,000,000 lendable funds that support the growth of non-traditional exports (NTEs) in Zambia and contribute to increased NTEs’ contribution to GDP growth and employment. This funding requirement can be in form of a credit line, loan or grant. Additionally, partners can work with us to address trade finance and cross border challenges for Zambians NTEs to India & other countries. With our partners we can contribute to increased access to finance for SMEs and enhance access for Zambian businesses to global opportunities including India & other countries.