Examining Critical Success Factors for Africa’s Sustainable Industrial Development with Special Reference to Zambian Manufacturing Sector – Challenges, Prospects & Opportunities

Abstract

This study was intended to examine critical success factors for Africa’s industrial development with special reference to the Zambian manufacturing sector - challenges, prospects & opportunities. The study had three (3) research questions; what are critical success factors for Zambia’s industrial development? How efficacious are the existing policy frameworks and /or governmental undertakings to guarantee Zambia’s achievement of SDG # 9 by the year 2030? What are socio-economically viable and actionable policy imperatives to industrialize the country by the targeted year? The study used a qualitative interpretive paradigm in targeting middle and top management key informant policy makers in line government parastatals and association [(Zambia Development Agency (ZDA), the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC), the Citizens Economic Empowerment Commission (CEEC), the Lusaka South Multi-facility Zone (LSMZ), and the Zambia Association of Manufacturers (ZAM)] within the manufacturing sector in which 25 were interviewed comprehensively through convenient and purposive sampling techniques. Content analysis was used to analyse the data. The study established that technology, innovation, infrastructure, skills development, financing, R&D, and actualized favourable manufacturing policies were critical success factors to Zambia’s industrial development. These parametric variables and policies must be anchored on a well guided and pragmatic political will from the politicians with required technical know-how. Besides, the study found out that although the country has close to enough policy instruments and frameworks to guarantee meeting its SDG # 9 if implemented coherently, consistently, and timely, there is no coherent systematization, co-ordination, and prioritization in attending to critically important productive sector policies for achievement of intended industrial development outcomes as the said factors (variables) fall across sectors / ministries thereby creating disjoints, discord and fragmentation in development actions. On the other hand, the study discovered with concern that there were no properly streamlined and sectoral delineation policies for foreign investors’ investments as some of them were found to be investing in mundane activities such as running retail grocery shops, auto shops, and hardware; mending motor vehicle tires; operating casinos; moulding bricks / blocks; rearing livestock like chickens, pigs, goats; roasting maize on city streets.which economic activities are too basic to be done by an investor at the expense of local people. The study concluded that the country needed to implement and actualize its industrial development policies and programmes as contained in its national policy documents, SDGs and the constitution with a further caveat that the social, cultural and economic rights be enshrined in the republican constitution as a matter of urgency in order not to rationalize and make optionless socio-economic development by politicians who always want to venture into rent-seeking activities at the expense of sustainable national development. The study assuredly noted that if these policies could be implemented in correctly identified productive manufacturing sectors / industries, the nation would in no time overcome its alarming poverty, unemployment, debt mountain, and inequality levels, which have dogged it for generations now as Zambia has necessary raw materials such as minerals, land, forestry, wildlife, water, energetic youthful population, sunshine, forestry, etc. for cutting edge industrial development. Raw commodity trade does not guarantee sustainable development but bleaks the nation’s and its generations’ future, hence the imperative to circumvent this bliss by sustainable industrialization and value addition to the country’s products and services for increased value.