DEBT RESTRUCTURING SAVED ZAMBIA FROM PAYING $4.9BN THIS YEAR- MUSOKOTWANE
By Masauso Mkwayaya
Government says the restructured debt has saved the country from paying about 4.9 billion U.S Dollars this year to official and private creditors.
Finance and National Planning Minister SITUMBEKO MUSOKOTWANE says this amount is nearly half of the 2024 National Budget, which totals around 7.4 billion U.S Dollars.
Speaking during ZNBC’s Sunday interview last evening, Dr. MUSOKOTWANE said once modalities are concluded , the Government will this year only pay less than 400 million U.S Dollars in debt servicing.
He says if the debt was not restructured, the Government would have struggled to fulfill its obligations such as civil servants’ salaries, buying medicines in hospitals and investing in infrastructure.
The minister said the country would have been crippled.
Dr. MUSOKOTWANE has also revealed that Zambia has become the first country to restructure its debt under the G-20 Common Framework, with the restructured debt accounting for about 77-percent of the country’s total debt.
He said focus has now shifted to conclude negotiations with another type of private creditors who include Commercial Banks and companies like contractors who offered a service to Zambia in various sectors such as road construction and other infrastructure developments in the country.
And the Finance Minister said the Government has put in place laws which mandate leaders to seek authority from Parliament before borrowing money.
Dr. MUSOKOTWANE says this is meant to ensure that the Government does not accrue unsustainable debt unlike in the past.
He said while the restructured debt is a significant step, it does NOT mean the end of the country’s economic challenges but should be seen as an opportunity for the Government to reorganize itself so that it continues attending to its responsibilities like recruiting teachers and nurses and paying meal allowances for students’ among other things.
Dr. MUSOKOTWANE has reassured the country that the government is actively working to streamline bureaucracy, to enable citizens to leverage the country’s resources for wealth creation and job opportunities.
Kwati alelenda ifyamano.
Vote wisely in 2026.
Am equally shocked how an economist would be proud of uttering such nonsense devoid of calculations. 4.9billion which he knows his grandchild will sweat to pay back through what will be increased taxes in 20years time come rain come sunshine. Someone to remind the idiot that rescheduling of problems to the time they all know won’t be around to solve is not only careless but cruel.
THESE ARE REAL COWARDS.
I’m amazed at how ignorant the two commentators above sound regarding the statement made by the minister. It seems they have zero understanding of even basic economics. Maybe just to educate them (of course I know it will still go above their heads) but all the same let me simplify it for them. In it’s current economic position, Zambia is has no capacity to pay the $4.9 billion dollars which was due this year regardless of how one looks at it due to poor performance of the economy. So extending the payment period gives us a bit of time to organize ourselves to raise the money and pay the debt by growing the economy but does not mean the burden grows.
For starters, if the economy grows significantly, suppose the GDP reach $50 billion or more in the next few years, $4.9 billion will be nothing compared to this time when our GDP is less than $23 billion dollars with a debt mountain. Please educate yourselves a bit before you comment on certain issues because you look ignorant when you make some comments without fully understanding the issue at hand.
Well articulated.
Perhaps the government should be in the forefront explaining in simple terms what the benefits of restructuring the debt are.
Ba Straight Forward….Ignorance and the want to stay ignorant are the hallmarks of certain people. The say you can take a cow to the river, but you cant force it to drink.
No matter how you put certain facts to certain people, they lack introspection. They fail to look at themselves in the mirror and see how they really look.
Let sleeping “dogs” lie. Only when they fall in a ditch will they see themselves for what they are.
Lets be cautious of their intent to be misinformers. As they seek to drag those innocent souls into the “ditch” with them like Satan.