The Editor Zambia
The UPND government’s targeted use of the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) has shifted development from boardroom promises to verifiable household impact.
The government’s decision to channel the CDF into feeder roads, bridges, market shelters, and community facilities, the new dawn administration has embedded economic opportunity into the very fabric of local life. 
In mining towns, where every percentage drop in transport cost can mean more money for school (private school) fees or food, this investment is not cosmetic—it is catalytic.
The recent completion of road infrastructure connecting Zambia to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) through strategic corridors like the Ndola–Mufulira Sakania and Chililabombwe–Kasumbalesa routes is a game- changer.
These arteries have reduced travel time, lowered freight and passenger costs, and opened new channels for cross-border trade.
Expected Household-Level Impact
In Mufulira, residents are most likely to have started experiencing cheaper, faster transport of farm produce and imported goods. This development means better margins for traders and farmers, translating directly into higher household income.
In Kitwe, which is an industrial hub, improved road connectivity is stimulating manufacturing output and logistics services, expanding formal and informal job opportunities.
In Ndola, which is positioned as a logistics nerve centre, faster customs turnaround boosts local service industries, from hospitality to vehicle repair.
In Chililabombwe, increased cross-border trade flow has enhanced roadside commerce and market activity, lifting daily earnings for small vendors.
In Chingola, strengthened road links are stabilising supply for both mining and retail sectors, enabling consistent wages and faster goods circulation.
These are not abstract gains they are the difference between a household living week-to-week and one with enough surplus to save, invest, and plan for the future.
The recent Chingola riots must be understood for what they are: not evidence of UPND’s failure, but a calculated act by illegal miners attempting to blackmail the government into legitimising resource theft. Yielding would undermine lawful enterprise, jeopardise investor confidence, and erode the stability that households in the Copperbelt depend upon.
There are also verifiable positive spillover effects from the Solwezi’s mining boom. This development illustrates how growth in one district can cascade across provinces.
Many workers originate from Copperbelt towns, sending remittances home that fund house construction, tuition, and small business ventures.
Copperbelt-based companies servicing Solwezi operations repatriate profits to invest locally, creating additional jobs and strengthening the business ecosystem.
These spillovers, when paired with CDF-funded infrastructure development, create a multiplier effect: a Solwezi miner’s wage builds a house inNdola; a Chililabombwe supplier’s contract purchase expands a Kitwe workshop; a Mufulira trader restocks faster thanks to better roads.
The psychology of progress is subtle people feel safer to invest when they see roads paved, markets full, and law upheld.
This is why infrastructure and governance are not just government programmes; they are the invisible scaffolding on which household dignity and regional prosperity stand.
Zambians are more relaxed and confident and happy to have been provided these social services, thanks to the UPND government, which has focused on improving the living conditions of citizens.
Come 2026, the opposition may have difficulties pointing at any negatives.
