The latest Zambia’s Debt Sustainability Analysis (DSA) Report has indicated that Zambia’s total public debt both internal and external remains sustainable under the current policy scenario.
And Zambia’s current debt stands at four point eight billion US dollars (US$ 4.8 billion).
Speaking during the launch of the Report in Lusaka this morning, Secretary to the Treasury Fredson Yamba says results of the Debt Sustainability Analysis reports of 2007, 2012 and 2014 all reveal that Zambia’s public debt is sustainable in the medium to long term, mainly on account of the strong macroeconomic performance the country has experienced.
Mr Yamba says accessing financing on the international capital market has been necessitated by limited concessional financing available for government to fund the huge deficit on the development programme agenda aimed at growing the economy and ultimately improving the welfare of the people of Zambia.
He states that the 2014 DSA was conducted against the backdrop of notable developments in Zambia’s debt financing.
Mr.Yamba says Zambia successfully issued a second Eurobond in April 2014 amounting to US$1 billion following its debut US$750 million Euro bond in September 2012.
Mr. Yamba further states that the 2014 External Debt Sustainability Analysis results show that the overall risk of external debt distress for Zambia remains low.
He says notwithstanding the two recent issuances in the Eurobond market all the debt burden indicators remain below their indicative threshold, except the external debt-service-to-revenue ratio which is projected to exceed the applicable benchmark in 2022 and 2024.
Government undertook a Debt Sustainability Analysis in collaboration with the Macroeconomic and Financial Management Institute of Eastern and Southern Africa from 13th to 26th June 2014 whose objective was to assess the sustainability of Zambia’s current level of debt and the prospective new borrowing requirements in the medium to long term.
Pf has in 3 years re-enslaved Zambia with such huge debt without much developmental projects to show. Under the pf government Zambia is headed for financial and economic disaster, just wait and see.
What government does not have debt? If government were to wait to have enough savings to build a $1 billion power, how many more blackouts can zambians take, how will new mines open with very little power in the country e.g.? Just asking
Just come back home and see for yourself the infrastructure development currently taking shape. Sorry to say the developmental projects are happening in Zambia and not where you’re yapping from.
Nonsense. Give us statistics. So you are justifying that we should continue borrowing. Foolish man strive not to have debts at all than to boast that you can still borrow. Malabishi.
You should be talking of how we can increase our home revenue base.
The issue is not about debt sustainability but prudent management to mobilise own resources other than borrowing. Zambia is rich and does not need to borrow or its people suffer as if God has not given us resources and human capital to prosper.
Yamba, should we honest be heading in that direction? The idea after HIPC was to be minimally/debt free and not to burdened our children by these issues. The Eurobonds you issued were not even needed at the time and today we are already struggling to pay the accumulated debt which you recklessly took the country into. Stop these selfish loan-nonesense and getting our country to the brink of collapse
The problem with politicians is that they want to justify and support anything as long as they are part of it. All the professionals outside Government who have spoken about Zambian debt concern are not fools.
I am sure the Greek politician said the same things when they were being warned, but what has happened now? the entire Greek population is suffering because of few selfish idi.ots who thought they know it all. Mr Yamba things are not okay. Listen to what people are saying.
Yamba you are the same *****s looting our resources and now that you have seen that there is no money in PF government you want to borrow more for your pockets. Most professionals in PF government have become *****s like cadres
Kashi chilifye bwino. Natulekongolafye mukwai. Ifintu ni Lungu.
That is the mantra on the ignorant Zambians on the street, oblivious to all the macroeconomic fundamentals ad their implication on the size of their nshima, condition of shirt on their back, and shelter.
“Ifintu ni Lungu!”
Anajaila kubvutika.
Tell us the internal debt too. Is it sustainable?
Watching the par value of maturing Treasury securities between the seen period in the report above now and 2022 , aligning accordingly will be helpful also even when china is the lender of last resort to many countries tying into those commodities for real growth to be registered apart from that driven by Gov. expenditure and maximising that quality in that capital being obtained to register growth
Its a welcome policy direction to support the infrastructural spending to support and excite the economy to register some modest growth
But the golden rule o f Good fiscal policy is that private sector grows should be faster than the public sector eventually after the massive capital outlay with meaningful returns on those GDP growth
Its also true that fiscal ruin is inevitable if Gov. spending grows faster than the productive part of the economy since tax base can only be increased marginally to support on the existing productivity
The case of Switzerland debt sustainability is a good case and yardstick to try to emulate and see the learning’s