The Patents and Companies Registration Agency (PACRA) has clarified that it is not mandatory for the Minister of Finance and National Planning to be a shareholder in all private companies incorporated by government agencies.
Some stakeholders have raised concerns over the Zambia National Service (ZNS) Commander Lieutenant General Maliti Solochi being one of the shareholders of the recently launched Eagles Holding Limited.
PACRA Registrar and Chief Executive Officer Benson Mpalo says Section 3 of the Minister of Finance (Incorporation) Act, Chapter 349 of the Laws of Zambia declares the Finance Minister as a corporation sole with power to hold shares in any company but the provision does not make it mandatory.
Mr Mpalo explains that the Companies Act, No. 10 of 2017 provides that a shareholder must be a person and the word ‘person’ according to the Interpretation and General Provisions Act, Chapter 2 of the Laws of Zambia, includes not only a natural person but also “any company or association or body or persons, corporate or unincorporate”.
He adds that concerns relating to such matters as dividends or transfer of shares upon vacation of office by individuals holding shares in a company where Government has an interest can be addressed in the Articles of Association or through a Shareholders’ Agreement at the incorporation stage.