The Economics Association of Zambia has asked the British High Commission to consider backing joint research, UK expert panels at its public forums, and the office space and staff it needs to run a permanent Secretariat.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- An Economics Association of Zambia (EAZ) delegation led by President Dr Edna Kabala-Litana paid a courtesy call on the British High Commission in Lusaka.
- The High Commission’s economic team was led by Ms Claire Allan, Head of Economic Development and Green Growth.
- EAZ said it lacks its own office premises and staff for a permanent Secretariat, and named both as areas where partners could help.
- Vice President Laban Simbeye proposed joint thematic research, links with networks such as the International Growth Centre (IGC), a joint concept note on climate change, and UK sector experts at EAZ public discussions.
The Economics Association of Zambia (EAZ) has taken its case for research partnerships to the British High Commission in Lusaka, in a courtesy call that also put the Association’s own institutional gaps on the table.
The meeting on 27 October 2026 forms part of the stakeholder engagement drive by EAZ’s new National Executive Committee (NEC). In recent weeks the same leadership has met the Bank of Zambia, approached FNB Zambia on a formal partnership, and opened talks with economists in Uganda.
Who was in the room
President Dr Edna Kabala-Litana led the EAZ team. She was joined by Vice President Mr Laban Simbeye, National Secretary Dr John Musantu, Deputy National Treasurer Mr Eugene Chandi, Legal Advisor Mr George and members of the Secretariat.
The British High Commission fielded its economic team: Ms Claire Allan, Head of Economic Development and Green Growth, with Economic Advisors Ms Claire Hilton and Mr Mulenga Musonda.
An association built on its members, asking for a home
Dr Kabala-Litana introduced the new NEC and set out its vision, strategic direction and priorities. She described how EAZ works: through committees of members who carry out research and lend their expertise. The Association’s strength, she said, rests on that membership.
She was also direct about what EAZ lacks. The Association has no office premises of its own. It also has no staff for a permanent Secretariat. She presented both as areas where partners could help EAZ deliver its mandate, alongside collaboration on research and public discussion forums.
The request is a practical one. A body that runs on volunteer committees depends on the time its members can spare, and leadership changes with each NEC. A permanent office and Secretariat would give EAZ continuity between terms and a fixed point of contact for partners.
What EAZ proposed
Mr Simbeye set out the substance. He proposed joint research on thematic areas, including work with research networks such as the International Growth Centre (IGC). The IGC is hosted by the London School of Economics and the University of Oxford and is funded by the UK government, which gives the proposal a natural route into British support.
He also proposed a joint concept note on climate change, a subject that sits within the green growth brief of the High Commission’s economic team. And he suggested that the UK bring sector experts to speak at EAZ public discussions on the economic questions facing Zambia.
Mr Simbeye argued that EAZ holds an important place in Zambia’s economic policy space, as an independent voice between government, markets and the public.
What to watch
Courtesy calls set the agenda rather than settle it, and no agreement was announced from this meeting. The proposals are concrete enough to track. The tests will be whether a joint climate change concept note is drafted, whether UK experts appear on EAZ discussion panels in the months ahead, and whether any partner steps in on the office and Secretariat question.
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