have arisen, and to cooperate with the legal authorities. we have also sought to respond honestly to questions from this committee. i have previously given evidence to the committee on the sequence of events as we saw them unfold. it is worthwhile to try to draw that together. in so doing, it is important to keep clear the distinction between the two companies in that sequence. in 2006, following the events at the australian wheat board, the reserve bank board asked questions about the policies for the use of overseas agents by the two companies. in the case of npa, the bank ’ s questions prompted the company to begin a process of developing stronger policies. rba management asked for an update on progress at npa in early 2007, and the npa board appropriately sought a paper from management on dealings with sales agents. after considering that paper, the npa board decided that an audit should be undertaken of past practices and compliance. that audit raised several very concerning things. it recommended that, apart from discontinuing the use of agents, the npa board undertake an urgent investigation of the role of relevant management and staff in dealing with agents to ensure compliance with australian law. on receiving this report, the npa board took the decision to cease the use of agents, and through a board sub - committee commissioned freehills to provide an assessment of the standards and compliance questions. it was while all these processes were under way that concerns held by a member of npa ’ s management over the company ’ s conduct became known to a reserve bank assistant governor who sat on npa ’ s board. the npa manager was asked by the then deputy governor to make a written statement. this document was part of the material examined by the freehills team that was asked by the npa board to examine the matters. i have conveyed these facts to the committee over the course of questioning at previous hearings. the document provided by the manager at npa was held in strict confidence at his request. this was a condition required by him, and the bank agreed to it because it valued his willingness to come forward. seeking professional legal expertise to assess the matters contained in this document, and the concerns raised in the audit, was a mark of how seriously they were taken. the decision to seek an external legal review was an important one. in the bank ’ s view, it was imperative to establish a process to investigate the issues thrown up by the audit findings and to ascertain and evaluate the

society, labour unions, investor groups, etc. as earlier alluded to, one of the tenets of good corporate citizenship is transparency and accountability. on the part of the councils, the major challenge they face in this regard is the delivery of quality service to their clients, which is underpinned by better management of resources. in conclusion, chairperson, ladies and gentlemen, in the interest of enhancing the competitiveness of business and maximise the value of wealth creation in mufulira district in particular and zambia as a whole, companies are urged to make social responsibility an integral part of the wealth creation process. i am confident that the zambian business community shall appreciate the benefits that accrue to both the company and its stakeholders in this vein, and hope i shall one day have the honour of being present at the first event to award deserving entities in this noble sphere. i thank you all.