ANGELA CHISHIMBA, Lusaka
CHIPAZUBA Company Limited proprietor Pauline Mundia has been bestowed with a male-dominated Zambia Association of Chambers of Commerce and Industry (ZACCI) award.
This is the second time ZACCI is awarding a female miner with this award, the first being Association of Zambian Women in Mining president Mary Lubemba, in 2013.
Mrs Lubemba, who also owns Gramiiraj Investment Limited which supplies amethyst and tourmaline, among other stones, said the awards symbolises the hard work of women in the mining sector.
“There are many challenges that we face but we persevere in production and sourcing for markets abroad …This is a signal that women are trying hard to ensure that they create jobs in this country,” she said.
Mrs Lubemba hailed Government through the Zambia Development Agency for supporting the women by exposing them to investment forums locally and abroad.
“In November this year, three of our members travelled to the United Kingdom to attend the UK-Zambia investment forum which was held in London,” she said.
Mrs Lubemba also thanked the Non-Governmental Co-ordinating Council for buying value addition machines for women in all the provinces to enable them add value to their stones.
She said the Ministry of Mines assesses the value of the products before they are sold.