It is an undeniable fact that we are faced with one of the unprecedented economic challenges of our generation. The acute power shortage which has spiral effects such as down-scaled production and generally dwindling national productivity has triggered another vicious circle. This includes indiscriminate cutting of trees for charcoal burning, which in turn will affect the climatic condition hence poor rainfall and therefore more and more load shedding. These challenges have been compounded by plummeting commodity prices on international market which in turn has adversely affected the performance of our currency and job security.
Amidst all these challenges there has been too much blame game, instead of soberly seeking for short, medium to long term solutions. The opposition has squarely hipped the blame on government. The government on the other hand has attributed the challenges to nature and international forces. In all these, there has not been any demonstration of unity of purpose by key stakeholders in finding solutions to the economic woes we are in. What is evident is the effects of the challenges such increased cost of living, poor quality of life due to power outages, increased prices of basic foods such as bread, cooking oil and others.
However, during the opening of parliament, our President outline the government’s interventions through short to long term measures. Indeed the speech was rated as generally inspiring by most stakeholders, however, others still criticised it as mere rhetoric and that the President did not address the challenges in the mining sectors.
Zambia is blessed with highly competent technocrats in the line ministries, the opposition, the civil society, private practice, in academia both local and international. The question is why can’t we sit down on a round table, share and brain storm on progressive ideas to find solutions for our own problems? I would like to urge the government to serious consider calling for an indaba so that all key stakeholders can share ideas and map ways of tackling our economic challenges. I would propose that this is done immediately after the 18th of October national day of prayers and reconciliation. I pray that God will give us wisdom to put our political affiliations aside and tolerate divergent views if the views will contribute to solving our economic challenges.
Let posterity charge us fairly as a people which can stand as one in challenges and solve our own problems, after all we are One Zambia, One Nation and we only have one Zambia.
by Shem Sikombe (Mr)
Lecturer: Copperbelt University, School of Business
Tell Kambwili about this…..
I am convinced, Edgar and PF can not be advised. I mean how does a president create 5 new ministries when running a budget deficit? How do they but 157 new cars for govt functionaries when coffers are empty? Why do they borrow from expensive sources and pay $34 million in consultancy when they could have borrowed at a cheaper rate. Now they are calling for prayers? No, koseni bane! How can one dialogue with Chishimba Kambwili, Davies Chama and Mumbi Phiri?
Elo lwanya, CHARCOAL burning to help PF in this economical catastrophe?
Lungu and his PF stooges think that the opposition should beg them when giving advice for them to listen and implement their suggestions. Infact HH has been upfront with free advice for which companies pay him millions to give.
UPND and HH in particular has consistently given free and practical advice to PF to change course and begin to save money so that it can be used to prop up the economy. Unfortunately PF and all its stooges think the advice given by an experienced economist is nothing. But here we are now. This is when they have realised that the economy has under crashed under the management of of Lungu but they still can not accept the blame but blame it on the opposition. How preposterous!
HH told us a long time ago that PF ni ba chimbwi no plan, and his words were ignored…
HH told us a long time ago that PF ni ba chimbwi no plan, and his words were ignored and now he has again been vindicated.
Verdict: The cause of all this misery in Zambia is PF ‘s stupidity and arrogance. Nevers and Chipimo have echoed HH ‘s words but they are not criticised all because they are author is “Bemba” How shameful.
Those who recall my sentiments about PF ‘s stupidity and arrogance will remember that I predicted tis dismal depreciation of the kwacha some time ago even before Sata died.
Vote UPND for government and HH for president to end this misery in 2016.
It simple this bandits have failed , you don’t need a phd to see what’s happening . The next generation coming up will be bankrupt because of the debit . How will this government pay back $6 billion ? If international banks get the mines .
You people! PF cadres don’t understand nothing indaba is a waste of time, PF needs to invest in the science of utumbuma,,, station utumbuma Ku BOZ, next time changwa goes Ku USA let him go with them to steal ma dollar fro Obama,, in the short term let them be sent kuli ba nemba pa bots
@Ndobo
I can see you have given up on advising PF and are now just concentrating on taking mickey out of them.
Thats funny! KKKKKKKKK
There are people who are being paid for running our economy. They must stop receiving salaries because they are not doing what they are mandated to do. As far as I know, HH, Nawakwi and Chipimo have offered advice on what the PF govt can do about these current issues (reduce cabinet, cut pres trips, invest euro bond in energy not roads, etc). But each time the PF has refused to listen, labeling the opposition leaders as bitter people.
The problem we have in Zambia is that a lot of people in the opposition are just good at criticizing but do not have solutions to the situation. Zambia would not be facing the problems we are currently facing if Chiluba had not become head of state. chiluba’s major achievement was to turn Zambia into “Shoprite”. Chiluba with the help of HH made sure that manufacturing companies like LENCO and Dunlop were closed down and Zambia became a nation of traders. It is shameful that there people in Zambia who import onions from South Africa.
Iwe **, how much admonitions do you need over the same? The problem with you and your tribesmen is that you are styupid and headstrong. You think corruption and stealing of which is part of your genetic makeup can run the economy. How many times have you called those who advised, bitter? Now feel it.
@Mwine munzi
Well said my friend….
But guess what….the people of Zambia know what time it is….2016 we already know the results…it’s PF and Lungu…period
2016 vote PF ( Edgar )
I thank you
@Mwine Munzi: Hate for Chiluba or HH will not improve the suffering innocent Zambian citizens are facing. This article, from a well learned person, is very progressive and non political. Few privileged people like you with money in your pocket may not feel the pitch but many are feeling the pitch, and with the way things are going, it will only get worse, unless drastic measures are put in place. Lets all support the Indaba call.
The solutions are there for any one with the smallest bit of intelligence to see. The opposition has put these forward hundreds of times. That was not the problem.
INCOMPETENCE, GREED and CORRUPTION by the current PF Government and massive BORROWING to make available even more money to steal is what has brought the Nation to its knees.
It is simply TOO LATE for some indaba to magically and miraculously fix the problem. Zambia has been sold to the holders of the EUROBONDS, and the money has gone down the drain.
Continued….
What is going to happen now is not a mystery. Other countries have been there before. The Kwacha will continue to lose value and probably put the Zimbabwe Dollar to shame in the speed it falls. Zambias current debt, accumulated in only FOUR YEARS of PF mismanagement is almost the same as Zimbabwes, accumulated in dozens of years!
Economic collapse is inevitable, and Zambia will once again be reduced to beggary.
If this PF manages to stay in power, Zambia will default on its debt and all the troubles Argentina has gone through are awaiting us. Any other future Government will have the same shadow hanging over it.
God help our children. Our only hope is to pray for the generosity of the international community who will demand austerity like never seen before?
” Zambia would not be facing the problems we are currently facing if Chiluba had not become head of state. ”
It started with the MMD and turning toward neoliberal economics. KK sailed his own nationalist course, and was punished for it by the IMF/WB, which created food riots, to smooth the way for a turn towards neoliberalism, which is what the MMD represented.
Now neoliberalism is failing all over the world, and who on the Zambian political scene has the intellect to turn away from it? They are all members of neoliberal parties, except maybe UNIP.
So let’s start the discussion there.
A well written article. Every one is blaming the govt but not offering solutions. MCS was offering solutions to Levy, no wonder they had to reconcile.
Naysayers and prophets of doom….” is the glass half full or half empty? What answer do you expect from Naysayers….”half empty of course ”
I will single out Nostradamus….what happened to you my good friend…you used to be very supportive of the govt…..you need to get back to the old Nostradamus that we all know and let’s help our Govt PF
2016 vote PF ( Edgar )
I thank you
You expect people to blame who? Are you nuts? The bums in Govt are paid to provide solutions based on the populist campaign promises,the Indaba thing is just a waste of time, Tell me which former Indaba Item has ever been implemented? Mr Lecturer am worried about your students if that’s your line of thought.
At the moment Edgar Lungu is running away from the BBC interview what an embarrassment he has brought on zambia since we got independence.
squarely ‘hipped’ – a lecturer at CBU and yiu wonder why we are where we are. Mr Lecturer is heaped not hipped.
you wonder not yiu
Who is HH i need help , is he a footballer or a netball er or a cow because this name is popular where they have cattles.
Even funny jokes ba PF mulafilwa? High quality dullness zoona, no one beats you.
Mr Shem Sikombe, please keep quiet if you have nothing to say. There is nothing new that you have said here. As always Zambian lecturers too academic. You are simply recounting what has already been said and you have not given us your own position on the economy. You are asking for an indaba, to talk about what? I don’t even know why you are going round in circles-Lungu is the cause of this crisis. Lungu has failed and dodged to make difficult decisions about a lot of issues affecting the economy and let alone running away from an interview which should be simply routine work for a president. If you are trying to be tactful, let me tell you again- Lung is squarely responsible for this crisis.
You do not understand how government works beans. ECL is not in Ministry of Finance of Bank of Zambia. There are well qualified and experienced people there. Lungu is just the team leader. For a country to move forward every zambian needs to work, not just Edgar. Mwahwa!
Nothing ever comes out of these so called indabas other than political posturing! Can anyone point to anything tangible that materialised from the 2009 indaba! The deliberations/recommendations from 2009 are just gathering dust! And I bet diversification was one of them! But how do you expect poor people (poverty stricken zambians stuggling to make ends meet) to diversify? The big money earners in Zambia such as glencore, vendatta, Trafigura,Dalbit, Shoprite etc are NOT HERE TO DIVERSIFY! They are here to mint the green buck and when the copper is depleted they will move on to chile or indonesia, Angola etc! Strong institutions, proper policies and electing accountable/responsible leaders can make the difference. Action NOT talking blah blah blah
You are perfectly right. Indabas which have so far been held have not produced any fruits apart from incurring more costs by hosting the delegates who undoubtedly make very practical recommendations but the political will to implement the recommendations is not there.
The problem with African politics is that we are voted into office to make our own names and not to serve the people as a result we are not duty bound to offer solutions for the common good.
I wish we had a government with that capacity to think like that. Unfortunately that is not possible under the current regime of president Lungu.
In any case, president Lungu cannot be blamed for the economic imbalances that we are going through,but Zambians should be blamed for missusing their votting powers. However , they have a last window to correct the mistake they made January 2015.
2016 vte wisely.
Laughable idea, absolutely ridiculous. No wonder he is an academic. I don’t want to sound like HH but all we need is an economic manager not a useless talking shop. Let’s sell the country to Warren Buffet and we will be fine. Maybe Bill Gates. We seem to have a propensity for mismanaging our affairs. 50 years of mediocrity. An indaba can’t cure stupidity.
You can take a donkey to pond to drink but you can not force it to drink…countless of times these empty tins have been advised to diversify and cut on infrastructures development which is overpriced…but they simply laughed in our faces. Are you telling me you can sit with Fossil Chikwanda, BUFFOON Kambwili and the Lazy Bum Lungu to brainstorm issues. …this article is definitely written by a lecturer.
My voter’a card is ready and verdict has been passed!
It’s laughable to hear one say one Zambia One Nation when even a child can enumerate that its now a farce. ..empty..really.
The same way we pretend about this one Zambia One nation which died in 1990, is the same way practice our Christianity. …in church we are brothers and sisters. .out the door tribal stupidity takes root…oh shiiiiit.
Zambians too much hate. Its not always about either UPND or PF. Our learned lecturer has proposed a very important idea of which every well meaning Zambia must endorse. Zambia is for Zambians and there are genuine citizens who want the best for this country. I repeat Zambia is NOT PF Vs UPND!
@Katondo boys uli cikopo iwe! Kwati ni Edgar! Wapala wiso nangu noko ubukopo?
Why wait for GRZ to call an indaba let us meet as citizens and brain storm we don’t need GRZ come up with a position paper .Implementation must be focused through Private Sector! we don’t need to get the State to the table
Obatala Jemasoni Lungu Shedding,
You are confused. Who told you that coffers are empty? You stay out just as you and where you are. You are an outsider though maybe born in Zambia. Zambia is not at war for it to have empty coffers. Keep your confusion to yourself wherever you are doing piece job.
MC Sata, while in opposition, used to criticise President Mwanawasa a lot. Mwanawasa used to implement whatever he saw as ‘good’ criticism. Let ECL do the same. Nawaki, Chipimo & HH have been on record criticising govt and offering alternatives. Let ECL sift through what these people and implement the ‘good’ advice. HH in particular has talked about reducing fuel prices; investing in Industry as against ‘roads’; reducing size of Govt; processing maize in mealie meal (thus adding value), etc. Do you want the opposition to give this advice while kneeling for you to implement it? You are in govt, not the opposition. The Zambian people will hold you accountable. Open your ears and listen!