IMO Welcomes New Member State

The land-locked Republic of Zambia has become the newest member of IMO, following the deposit, of an instrument of acceptance of the Convention on the International Maritime Organization with the Secretary-General of the United Nations.

His Excellency Paul William Lumbi, High Commissioner of the Republic of Zambia to the United Kingdom, on Wednesday April 8 paid a courtesy visit to the headquarters of the IMO to mark the occasion.

Welcoming His Excellency Lumbi, IMO Secretrary-General Koji Sekimizu said that the Republic of Zambia is an important member of the international community. He said, “I’m sure our membership will really welcome you. We will support you.”

In turn, His Excellency Lumbi expressed his happiness at Zambia’s having joined IMO, saying, “we look forward to benefiting from the experiences of other IMO Member States, particularly landlocked States.”

With the acceptance of the Convention by Zambia, the number of IMO Member States stands at 171, with a further three Associate Members.

Snapshot of Zambia’s trade (Source MIT)

Top five products exported by Zambia    
Refined Copper (44 percent) 
Raw Copper (29 percent)
Corn (5.5 percent)
Raw Tobacco (4.9 percent) 
Raw Cotton (2.5 percent)

Top five products imported by Zambia    
Delivery Trucks (5.9 percent) 
Excavation Machinery (3.4 percent) 
Large Construction Vehicles (3.0 percent) 
Iron Structures (2.3 percent) 
Refined Petroleum (2.2 percent)

Top five export destinations of Zambia    
China (48 percent)
South Africa (10 percent) 
Zimbabwe (8.6 percent)
South Korea (6.0 percent) 
Egypt (5.6 percent)

Top five import origins of Zambia
South Africa (57 percent) 
China (14 percent) 
India (4.7 percent) 
United Kingdom (2.9 percent) 
Japan (2.8 percent)