Fertiliser, irrigation and 10,000 megawatts: in Moscow, Haimbe reads Hichilema's pitch to Russian investors and asks for help with climate preparedness and African-language AI

Zambia went to Moscow with a shopping list and a growth target. At the plenary session of the Third Russia-Africa Summit, held on 28 and 29 October, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Mulambo Haimbe, delivered a statement on behalf of President Hakainde Hichilema that invited Russian investors into three areas: fertiliser production, irrigation technology and energy, where the government's stated ambition is 10,000 megawatts of generation. The Times of Zambia and Zambia Monitor both reported the speech; the Times said the approach was framed as one of openness, mutual respect and mutually beneficial economic cooperation.

The frame around the offer was the Grow Zambia Agenda, which aims to double the size of the economy within five years. The Times of Zambia listed the agricultural targets attached to it: ten million tonnes of maize, three million tonnes of soya beans, a million tonnes of wheat and a million tonnes of sugar, with Zambia presenting itself as a regional food basket on the strength of what the speech put at about 40 per cent of southern Africa's water resources. Zambia Monitor added the mining side: a target of three million tonnes of copper a year and a search for partners to process cobalt, manganese and lithium at home rather than export them raw. Haimbe named the Lobito, Nacala and Walvis Bay corridors as the routes that would carry the trade, and the African Continental Free Trade Area as its market.

Africa's food and energy security are essential to drive healthy and productive human resources and industries.
— Mulambo Haimbe, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, delivering President Hichilema's statement to the summit plenary in Moscow, as quoted by Zambia Monitor

Climate, AI and the Security Council

The speech also carried requests that were not about capital. According to Zambia Monitor, it noted that Zambia contributes less than 0.01 per cent of global emissions yet saw more than nine million people affected by the 2023/24 drought, and it asked for investment in climate preparedness and anticipatory action. It raised cooperation on artificial intelligence, including technology transfer, digital infrastructure, skills and AI systems for African languages, and it repeated the continent's call for reform of the global financial architecture and of the United Nations Security Council.

Why the minister and not the President went is not explained in the reporting. In a statement on 27 October, the ministry's principal public relations officer, Eva Hatontola Chanda, said Haimbe would deliver Zambia's statement on the President's behalf, attend the Russia-Africa Economic and Humanitarian Forum and meetings on trade, security and technology, and hold engagements on the welfare of Zambians living in Russia; the ministry said Zambia would use the summit to advocate for the peaceful resolution of conflicts and to contribute to discussions on equitable economic partnerships. Hichilema was in Lusaka that week completing his Cabinet. Neither the Times nor Zambia Monitor reported any agreement signed by Zambia in Moscow, and the summit's closing declaration was not covered in the reports read for this story.

Sources: Times of Zambia, “Zambia seeks win win economic ties with Russia” (31 Oct 2026); Zambia Monitor, “Zambia courts Russian investors in fertiliser, irrigation, energy projects” (30 Oct 2026); Zambia Monitor, “Haimbe arrives Moscow for Russia-Africa Summit, as ministry outlines reasons for attendance” (27 Oct 2026).