Did Zambia’s President Vow To Replace Churches With Industries?
On September 21, 2025, an X user @zoomafrika1 claimed that Zambia’s President Hakainde Hichilema said he will replace churches with industries. The post had a 44-second video of President Hichilema giving a speech calling on churches to join the food production sector of the country, with the caption, “Zambia President Hakainde Hichilema to replace churches with Industries”.
As of when this report was published, the claim had about 51,000 views and about 60 replies, reposts, quotes, likes and bookmarks.
VERIFICATION
To ascertain the origin of the video accompanying the claim, NV-A carried out a reserve image search of a snapshot from the video. The search results showed that the video started circulating over a month ago, on various social pages here, here and here.
The video was from the speech given by the president on August 15, 2025 while commissioning the sixth Zambia National Service Officer Cadets Intake of 2024. In the speech, Hichilema said, “I have said even to churches that you can’t just be worshiping and singing from Monday to Sunday, you must also produce some food because even the choirs need some eggs and tea just to make their throats better. I’m serious about this.”
President Hichilema has consistently described the church as a partner in national development, not as an opponent. In several speeches, he emphasised that religious institutions contribute to education, healthcare, food security, and the promotion of values such as honesty and hard work. He has also called on churches to participate in economic empowerment initiatives and in changing citizens’ mindsets toward productivity.
The Hichilema administration has indeed prioritised industrialisation and job creation as key pillars of Zambia’s economic recovery. However, these initiatives are unrelated to the existence of churches. Rather, they are part of broader reforms to strengthen Zambia’s economy.
Results from NV-A’s check reveal that there are no official statements from the Zambian Government, Zambian media, or news reports that support the claim of shutting down churches or replacing them with industries.
CONCLUSION
The claim that President Hakainde Hichilema plans to replace churches with industries is FALSE. His industrialisation agenda is focused on economic reforms and job creation, while he continues to recognise churches as partners in national development.
