[1] He also served as a Member of Parliament for Chilanga Constituency from 2006 until 2010 and the Chairman of the MMD Party Committee on Economy and Finance.
He began his career in 1971 as a cadet in the Zambia civil service, and then left for Makerere University in Kampala, Uganda, where he did a Master of Science degree in Agricultural Economics.
In June 1994, he returned to government service as a Project Coordinator to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Fisheries under technical assistance by the African Development Bank.
From July 1996 until February 2000, he served as the Secretary-General of the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States (ACP), headquartered in Brussels, Belgium.
Between 2000 and 2003, he undertook consultancy work for various organisations, among them, SADC, COMESA, AU, UNDP, MEFMI, Maxwell Stamp, IMANI and the Governments of Zambia and Malawi.