LUSAKA, February 18. /TASS/. Russia and Zambia will find options for financing nuclear science and technology in the African country, speaker of Russia’s Federation Council (upper chamber of the Russian parliament) Valentina Matvienko said at a meeting with Zambian President Edgar Chagwa Lungu on Tuesday.

"Now the start of the construction of a center for nuclear science and technology has been suspended due to financial issues. I would like to say that your request submitted to the Russian president last autumn is being carefully considered by our ministries and departments. I’m confident that jointly we will find options to promote funding to roll out the construction of a center for nuclear science and technology," she said.

According to the Russian official, at the moment there are all conditions for the development of cooperation on high technologies between Russia and Zambia. She called the construction of a center for nuclear science and technology a priority bilateral project.

"Since the signing of the agreement in 2017, a lot of work has been done. We know that Zambia considers the construction of a center for nuclear science and technology as the first step in the development of the peaceful use of the atom and plans to consider the construction of a nuclear power plant in the future. Of course, this will qualitatively change the economy of Zambia: not only it will be able to fully meet its electricity needs, but also to export it to other countries, " Matvienko continued.

Rosatom and the Republic of Zambia signed a general contract for the construction of a center for nuclear science and technology, the first joint project of the two countries in the field of nuclear technologies, in May 2018.

In 2017, Russian state nuclear corporation Rosatom and the Zambian government concluded a number of agreements for the development of nuclear sector in Zambia. In particular, they inked an agreement on cooperation in the construction of a center for nuclear science and technology, the first joint project of the two countries in the field of nuclear technologies.