THE challenge by the Zambia Competition Commission (ZCC) to the business community to freely import cement should be supported because of the important role the product plays in economic development.

Cement prices in Zambia have always been on the higher side and any efforts aimed at bringing down the cost need to be supported.

As stated by the ZCC, the cost of cement in Zambia is about US$12 per 50 kilogramme bag while the average for the region is $8.

In fact, this is only for Lusaka, as a recent study by the World Bank showed that taking into consideration variations from the city centre to the countryside, the average price is $15.

This makes our cement very dear and difficult for many to engage in the construction of various infrastructure.

Infrastructure development, rehabilitation, construction of new buildings and roads, all depend on a steady supply of competitively priced cement.

Zambia has been experiencing sporadic shortages of cement in the last few years that has led to prices going up.

Demand has often outstripped supply, leading to the inevitable skyrocketing of prices.

Lafarge Zambia, the biggest cement producing company, recently commissioned a new plant in Lusaka's Chilanga area.

During the commissioning, it was envisaged that the new plant would ensure the market is fully supplied with cement with the resultant effect being a reduction in prices.

But to date, prices have not reduced as expected.

That is why the clarification by ZCC that there is no importation ban on cement has come at a right time when a number of construction projects are coming up.

The construction companies in Zambia have actually been disadvantaging themselves and their clients by restricting their purchase to the local manufacturers when, like the ZCC has stated, they can actually import for less.

In any case, people will have a wider choice and run away from the monopolistic tendencies.

However, we note that some dealers that have been importing cement from neighbouring countries, particularly from Zimbabwe, have been cheating on consumers because the prices have been fetching just as high as the local cement when they must have bought the commodity at a far lower price.