Zambia has commissioned a new fertiliser manufacturing facility in Chilanga District, Lusaka Province, constructed by China Wuhuan Engineering Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of the China National Chemical Engineering Group Corp. Ltd. The plant, financed by the Wonderful Group of Companies Ltd., represents a major development in Zambia’s long-term ambition to achieve self-sufficiency in fertiliser production and strengthen its industrial base.
At the commissioning ceremony on 16 October 2025, President Hakainde Hichilema affirmed that the facility would significantly reduce the nation’s reliance on fertiliser imports and catalyse growth across Zambia’s agricultural value chain. He emphasised that the initiative aligns with the country’s economic diversification agenda, which seeks to reduce dependence on raw commodity exports by promoting domestic manufacturing.
The plant, constructed under an Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) contract, is expected to produce 300,000 metric tonnes of urea and 180,000 metric tonnes of synthetic ammonia annually once it reaches full operational capacity. This output is projected to satisfy Zambia’s current domestic demand while positioning the country as a potential supplier to regional markets across Southern and Eastern Africa.
Chinese Ambassador to Zambia, Han Jing, described the facility as a tangible outcome of China–Zambia industrial cooperation, emphasising its role in supporting Zambia’s industrialisation and modernisation goals. He noted that the collaboration demonstrates a model of mutual benefit in South–South cooperation, where African industrial aspirations meet technical and financial partnership from Asian stakeholders.
The Chilanga fertiliser plant stands as part of a wider African movement towards reclaiming value chains and building endogenous industrial capacity. Across the continent, countries such as Nigeria, Morocco, and Ethiopia have also invested in fertiliser production as a strategic lever for agricultural transformation. By enhancing domestic production, African economies aim not only to stabilise food systems but also to assert greater control over agro-industrial inputs that have historically been externally sourced.
While some international analysts have framed such partnerships through the lens of geopolitical competition, Zambian policymakers and regional observers increasingly interpret them as expressions of pragmatic agency—where African states engage diverse partners to serve national and continental development priorities.
For Zambia, the fertiliser plant represents more than an industrial milestone; it reflects a deepening vision of economic sovereignty, rooted in production, innovation, and regional solidarity. As the country pursues its industrialisation blueprint, partnerships of this nature are poised to redefine Africa’s industrial landscape—one that foregrounds African agency, capacity, and self-determination in an interconnected global economy.
