K23.2 BILLION RELEASED IN JANUARY 2026 TO KEEP SERVICES RUNNING, PAY OBLIGATIONS ON TIME, AND KEEP ZAMBIA MOVING FORWARD
- By Dr. Situmbeko Musokotwane, MP, Minister of Finance & National Planning
Fellow citizens and friends of Zambia,
Our 2026 National Budget is a turning point because it is the first budget that we are implementing after stabilizing our economy under the IMF-supported Extended Credit Facility (ECF) Programme. For the last three years, we worked to fix the fundamentals—stronger fiscal discipline, lower and steadier inflation, improved reserves, reduced arrears, and restored credibility with citizens, markets, and cooperating partners. Now, the focus is clear: we are converting that stability into growth, investment, jobs, and continued cost-of-living relief.
That is why we are treating infrastructure as productive capital—not consumption. Every kwacha put into roads, electricity, and water supply and sanitation services lowers the cost of doing business, reduces everyday transport and logistics burdens, supports value chains, attracts private investment, and improves household welfare. Zambia is no longer stabilizing for its own sake; Zambia is positioning for growth.
Against that backdrop, the Government—through the Ministry of Finance and National Planning—released K23.2 billion in January 2026 to keep public services running and to sustain priority national programmes. These releases were structured to cover what keeps the country moving: the public service wage bill, debt service (domestic and external), the dismantling of arrears, statutory and social transfers, day-to-day operations, and capital expenditure that keeps infrastructure activity on course.
Here is how the January releases were applied.
First, K4.9 billion went to the Public Service Wage Bill—paying personal emoluments for health workers, teachers, security personnel, and overseas allowances for diplomats serving in our missions abroad. In plain terms, this is about protecting continuity: clinics function, schools run, and security services remain operational.
Second, K7.4 billion was applied to debt service and arrears, because credibility is not something we announce—it is something we demonstrate through consistent payment discipline. Of this amount, K6.6 billion went to domestic debt service, K310.1 million went to external debt service, and K439.9 million was used to dismantle domestic arrears owed to suppliers of goods and services.
Third, K7.7 billion was released for transfers, subsidies, and social benefits—to support livelihoods, protect vulnerable citizens, and keep key institutions delivering. This support included K1.5 billion to Grant-Aided Institutions (including hospitals and universities), K768.9 million in school grants to advance the Free Education Policy, K300 million for the Constituency Development Fund (CDF), and K120.8 million for the Local Government Equalisation Fund.
Within this same social-support category, K4.9 billion was released to the Food Reserve Agency (FRA) to settle outstanding obligations to farmers who supplied maize in the 2024/2025 crop marketing season. Let me be direct: the Government is not currently in arrears to farmers. Where reports of unpaid farmers may arise, they are most likely linked to administrative or banking processing bottlenecks between individual farmers and their banks—not because Treasury failed to fund the obligation.
We also released K147.5 million to clear outstanding dues under the Cash for Work Programme. This was done to restore integrity and confidence in the programme’s administration. With those outstanding dues addressed, the revised Cash for Work Programme will restart on a clean slate in March/April 2026.
Fourth, to keep Government institutions functioning and programmes executing without interruption, K1.8 billion was released for the implementation of programmes and other general operations—aligned to approved workplans and day-to-day service-delivery requirements.
Fifth, we released K1.4 billion for capital expenditure, because growth is built, not wished into existence. Of this amount, K655.5 million supported road infrastructure, K67.8 million supported the Rural Electrification Authority (REA), K201.9 million supported water infrastructure projects, and K440.2 million supported infrastructure development coordinated across ministries nationwide.
So what is the message of these January releases?
In January 2026, the Treasury releases reinforced three signals that matter most to citizens and markets: continuity, credibility, and clean execution. Continuity means essential public services and core Government functions did not stall. Credibility means our obligations were met in a way that sustains confidence in the Government’s payment culture and fiscal discipline. Clean execution means we did not merely release resources—we closed out legacy payment lines so that key programmes can move forward without distortions from carry-over arrears.
And let me emphasize this: the way we treated FRA dues to farmers and Cash for Work reflects the discipline of the 2026 Budget. We are settling verified obligations in an orderly manner, and we are resetting priority social interventions so they can deliver results predictably, on time, and with accountability.
That is how Zambia moves forward—from stabilization into a growth-oriented phase that is practical, jobs-focused, and visible in everyday life.
Ends.