Zambia resumed trade with the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) on Tuesday after closing the border with the neighboring country on Saturday.
The DRC’s move to ban imports of beer, soft drinks and lime last month sparked protests on its side of the border. This prompted Zambia to announce the border closure, citing concerns for the safety of transport drivers who were being attacked.
“The borders are open,” Zambian Trade Minister Chipoka Mulenga told Bloomberg.
“We had a very good dialogue with our brothers in the Democratic Republic of Congo.”
Congo, the world’s second-largest copper producer, produced more than 2.8 million tonnes of the metal last year, almost all of which typically travels through Zambia to reach regional ports in Namibia, South Africa and Tanzania.
The main Kasumbalesa crossing between Zambia and Congo is one of the busiest in southern Africa, with queues of lorries sometimes stretching for more than 48 kilometers.
Mulenga had traveled to the southern Congo city of Lubumbashi on Monday to meet his counterpart and work to resolve the issue.
(With files from Bloomberg)
