Finance Minister Margaret Mwanakatwe has officially launched Zambia Industrial Commercial Bank Limited with a call to partner with private sector in finding solutions to the challenges being faced by SME sector.
Speaking during the launch in Lusaka, Mrs. Mwanakatwe said government is aware of the challenges that local entrepreneurs face in accessing financing that is structured for the primary purpose of stimulating growth of the SMEs and local businesses.

Mrs. Mwanakatwe states that access to finance for SMEs is limited due to the presence of structural constraints, including firm informality, high collateral requirements, and poor bank lending tools.
“These challenges of lack of affordable and long-term access to financing, among others, have been cited by the SMEs’ as the major reason for their low participation in the major economic activities of our country. As government, we want to see enhanced growth of local businesses,” she said.
She adds that it is for this reason that government enacted the Movable Property Security Interest Act to make the business environment attractive for lenders to accept movable property as collateral.
“Furthermore, government recently operationalised the Zambia credit guarantee scheme limited that offers guarantees to commercial banks for credit extended to the local SME-Sector. And now we are here today to launch a bank that will be primarily focused on the commercialization and industrialization of Zambian SMEs and local businesses,” said Mrs. Mwanakatwe.
The Finance Minister says the launch of Zambia Industrial Commercial Bank Limited is the government’s commitment to partner with the private sector in finding solutions to the challenges being faced by Zambians, particularly those in the SME sector.
Mrs. Mwanakatwe expects that the launch of the bank heralds a new chapter in the banking sector in Zambia, and that the local businesses will seize this great opportunity to grow their businesses and increase their contribution to the GDP of the country.