THE GOOD AND THE COMMENDABLE IN THE 2024 NATIONAL BUDGET, PART 1
After carefully studying the 2024 national budget, here are some of the good and commendable plans and policies to take home we have taken not of:
1. Agriculture
– Cost of fertilizer from USD $1,200 to $862
– Establishing of fish hatcheries in kasempa, mushindamo and samfya districts.
2. Manufacturing
– Review of policies in the multi-facility economic zones (MFEZ) regarding expatriates.
3. Small & Medium Enterprise Development
– Construction of industrial yards.
4. Transport & Logistics
– Lifting of visa restrictions for some African countries.
– Upgrading border infrastructure at sakania, mukambo and kipushi.
– 500km rehabilitation of feeder roads in 2024.
5. Information & Communication Technology
– Construction of 169 additional towers.
– Migration of public services to an online platform called Zamportal.
6. Science, Technology & Innovation
– Construction of the National Institute for Scientific and Industrial Research (NISIR).
7. Education & Skills Development
– Construction of 120 secondary schools in 2024.
– Hiring of 4,200 teachers.
8. Health
– Construction of 30 maternity annexes in 2024.
– Construction of cancer treatment centres in livingstone and ndola
– Local pharmaceutical manufacturing.
9. Water & Sanitation
– Drill 1,374 bores in 2024.
– Construction of 38 multi-purpose dams in 2024.
10. Social Protection
– Girls education and women’s empowerment projects to cover 129,400.
11. Environmental Sustainability
– Installation of 50 automatic weather stations.
12. Fiscal Policy
– Reduce budget deficit on cash basis to 4.8% from 5.8%.
13. Domestic Resource Mobilisation
– Proposal for a unified tax administration act.
14. Population & Development
– Promoting the use of biometric identity.
PS: WATCH OUT FOR PART 2, THE TERRIBLE AND THE FAMILIAR IN THE 2024 NATIONAL BUDGET.
Silavwe Jackson
President
GPZ.