The Zambian government is actively seeking to learn from one of the world’s most dramatic agricultural transformation stories, with Deputy Secretary to the Cabinet Oliver Kalabo describing Brazil’s farming model as deeply aligned with Zambia’s own development aspirations and calling for a step-change in how the two countries translate that alignment into tangible outcomes.
Kalabo made the remarks on the sidelines of a high-level Eastern and Southern African Management Institute study tour in Brasília, alongside Zambian diplomats. “Brazil’s agriculture is highly mechanized and driven by world-class innovation. Zambia must tap into this expertise to transform our own sector. This engagement is not a courtesy visit but a strategic imperative under President Hakainde Hichilema’s deliberately intensified diplomatic and economic outreach to Brazil,” explained Kalabo.
He urged the Zambian Mission in Brasília to follow up proactively on all areas of mutual interest, particularly ensuring that the agricultural cooperation agreement signed in 2025 produces concrete returns rather than remaining on paper. Permanent Secretary of the Public Service Management Division Lois Mulube identified livestock and large scale crop agriculture as the sectors with the most immediate lessons to draw from the Brazilian experience. “This visit is crucial for understanding how Brazil has fostered an environment where the public and private sectors work in tandem to drive massive economic growth,” said Mulube. Further pointing to the public-private synergy that has made Brazil a global agricultural powerhouse as the model Zambia must study and adapt.
The study tour reflects a broader pattern in Zambia’s current diplomatic posture using multilateral platforms and international engagements to build the knowledge base, investment relationships and institutional capacity that domestic agricultural transformation demands. For a country with Zambia’s land endowment, water resources and demographic profile, the question is not whether the potential exists. It is whether the policy framework, financing architecture and skills base can be assembled quickly enough to realise it.
