Examining Critical Success Factors for Africa’s Sustainable Industrial Development with Special Reference to Zambia’s Manufacturing Sector – Challenges, Prospects & Opportunities

This study was purposed to examine critical success factors for Africa’s industrial development. The study employed a phenomenological research design in which a case study approach was used in targeting middle and top management key informant policy makers in line government parastatals and association(s) within the manufacturing sector in which 25 were interviewed comprehensively through convenient and purposive sampling techniques. Content analysis through determination of emerging themes was used to analyse the data. The study established technology, innovation, infrastructure, skills development, financing, R&D and actualized favourable manufacturing policies to be critical success factors to Africa and Zambia in particular’s industrial development. Besides, the study found out that although the country has close to enough policy instruments and frameworks to guarantee meeting its SDG # 9 if implemented coherently, consistently and timely, there is no properly co-ordinated and prioritized attention to critically important productive sector policies for achievement of intended industrial development outcomes as the said factors fall across ministries thereby creating disjoints, discord and fragmentation in actions. On the other hand, the study established with concern that there was no properly streamlined and sectoral delineation for foreign investors’ investments as some of them were found to be investing in mundane activities which economic activities are too basic and could be done by locals. The study concluded that the country needed to implement and actualize its industrial development policies and programmes as contained in its national policy documents, SDGs and the constitution with a further caveat that the social, cultural and economic rights must be enshrined in the republican constitution as a matter of urgency in order not to rationalize and make optional socio-economic development by politicians. If these policies can be implemented in correctly identified productive manufacturing industries, the nation would in no time overcome its alarming poverty, unemployment and inequality levels which have dogged it for generations now as raw commodity trade does not guarantee sustainable development. Keywords: Critical Success Factors, Industrial Development, Africa, Zambia.