The talks concerned the possibility of developing bilateral relations in the agricultural sector, intensification of trade in agri-food products and potential cooperation in the area of research and development works.

At the beginning of the meeting, the Secretary of State Jacek Czerniak congratulated the Ambassador on taking up the position and wished her success in the execution of the duties entrusted to her.

He stressed that Poland offered high-quality food meeting rigorous safety standards. He also pointed to the interest of the Polish party in agreeing models of veterinary health certificates for a number of products exported to Zambia, in particular, poultry meat and poultry products.

Deputy Minister Czerniak also declared his readiness to establish scientific and research cooperation with the participation of research institutes supervised by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

Position of the Zambian party

Ambassador Winnie Chibesakunda expressed her hope that the meeting at the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development would be the beginning of long-term and fruitful cooperation. As she highlighted, Zambia was a country with a high agricultural potential, but it was struggling with a deficit of knowledge and experience in the field of modern cultivation techniques, effective use of land resources and production planning. Similar challenges also apply to the breeding sector – the country has no knowledge in the field of prevention and control of animal diseases. Bearing in mind the high level of development of Polish agriculture, Zambia is interested in cooperation with Polish experts and getting to know the best practices used in Polish agriculture.

Trade in agri-food products

In 2024, the value of agri-food export from Poland to Zambia amounted to EUR 1.2 million. The major exported goods include undenatured ethyl alcohol with a strength of less than 80% as well as poultry meat and edible offal – together accounting for nearly 74% of the value of total export to this country. In turn, tobacco is mainly imported to Poland from Zambia.