A history of Kawambwa tea company, 1970-1996

Abstract

This dissertation reconstructs a history of the Kawambwa Tea Company. It covers the period between 1970 and 1996. Its first chapter describes the beginning of rural development schemes in British Colonial Africa and accounts for their establishment. The chapter has shown that the first attempt made to develop colonies in Africa by the British government was in 1929 when the British Parliament passed a Bill which allowed the government to spend a sum of £1 million annually on the development of all the African British Colonies. Chapter two discusses the problems of undercapitalisation and maladministration and the political interference in the running of the Company. It demonstrates that undercapatilisation and the administrative problems and political interference had negative effects on the performance of the Company. The third chapter examines the performance of the Company in the context of national and regional political economy. In this chapter, we show that the poor economic situation that prevailed in Zambia negatively affected the company's tea sales because it permitted the influx of cheaper tea into the country and also affected the financial position of enterprises and individuals who used to purchase the Kawambwa tea.The last chapter shows that in spite of the numerous problems the Company faced, it had both economic and social impact on the people of Kawambwa and surrounding districts. The employment the Company provided led to an increase in cash flow in the area and this in turn boosted trade in industrial and local goods while the clinic and the schools initiated by the Company provided essential health and educational services to the local population.