State House says the Zambian government will turn down any proposals to implement tough austerity measures that will hurt the majority poor.
State House Special Assistant for Press and Public Relations Amos Chanda clarified that the International Monetary Fund bailout program which Zambia intends to engage into will be a mutually agreed program designed to stabilize the local economy.
Mr Chanda has assured that there will be no austerity measures that will be accepted that may make the status of majority vulnerable Zambians worse contrary to assertions that the IMF program will hurt Zambians.
Mr. Chanda disclosed that government has reached advanced stages in negotiating with the IMF for a possible bailout package but was quick to mention that government has not yet made a commitment to the proposed US$1.2 billion.
He said once ministers are appointed, the program will be negotiated on terms agreeable to the government and that all the money received will be channelled to productive areas.
“The money that is being injected into subsidies will be invested in growth areas of the economy,” Mr Chanda told a media briefing at State House on Tuesday.
Mr Chanda said the IMF had indicated in talks with the government that the aid package would amount to around $1.2 billion dollars and negotiations would resume as soon as a new cabinet was appointed.
He said the government shares the IMF’s concerns about the huge amounts of money being spent on subsidies but that would not implement measures that would hurt the poor.
“There will be no austerity measures that will be accepted that will increase the cost of health care. There will be nothing that will be accepted that will make life for the poor more miserable than it is now,” Mr. Chanda said.
President Edgar Lungu said on August 18 that Lusaka and the IMF had reached broad consensus on the key areas of an aid programme for Zambia, but did not elaborate.
Way to go!! Stand your ground. IMF likes shifting goal posts and imposing tough economics measures that in the long run does more harm than good.
Kaya!!!! Unless the Chinese are willing to step in we may not have a lot of leeway to negotiate. Ndiye vuto na nkongole! The owner of the money calls the shots.
That is a wise approach.
I knew that the president in his great wisdom and love for the Zambian people will not tolerate negative aspects of the IMF deal.
Anyway, let the delays be concluded so that that president can be inaugurated, announce his cabinet, and give his speech to give indication and national direction for the next 5 years.
God bless His Excellence president Edgar C. Lungu. God bless our great nation. God bless Zambia.
“There will be no austerity measures that will be accepted that will increase the cost of health care. There will be nothing that will be accepted that will make life for the poor more miserable than it is now,” Mr. Chanda said.
So you know that you made the life of the people miserable? Sorry but IMF comes with its conditions, it is either you take them or leave then, there will be no negotiations.
And why does Chanda sound as if he already read the Concourt judgement and know that the ruling will be in favour of Lungu?
Mr Daka you really are a Nyau ! When you ask for Credit do you give conditions/are given conditions to pay ?
Please do not take Zambian people for granted , ba Amos Chanda i feel you should go back to school because you can’t tell the difference between white & black
If you did not want the austerity measures imposed by IMF you would not have gone to borrow from them. A begger is not a chooser.. If you accept their money you will accept their condition. More powerful nations like Greece also wanted to stand firm on their conditions and in the end have to accept all if IMFcondjtions as they wanted their money.
So Mr. Chamba, stop lying to us. You are not in a good position to negotiate as a begger. Lungu already told the people to titen their belts for the next five years..
Power void! Now this mwaiche Amos Chanda is president of zambia,,, how can he be talking about IMF and on behalf of zambians
And do you think IMF will give you their money on your tearms after the way you sqandered the EURo Bond millions just less than five years ago? Your lack of accountability will make them step up conditions on how you will use their money.
I seriously wonder how the country went brock with all the money that was borrowed in less than 5 years ago. No one wanted to talk about it during the campaign period and everyone was busy talking about tribalism..
What choice do you have when you have already put us in this position you vision less chaps! IMF wouldn’t be here in the first place if this country was properly run, look at us now, soon to be worse than Zimbabwe.
What subsidies is this PF stooge in the name of amos chanda talking about? I thought all the subsidies were removed just when PF got into power.
Folk dont be cheated by these PF id1ots, 85% of the money from IMF is going to honour the Eurobonds and other debts the PF accumulated on behalf of poor Zambians..
Mwanya muzanya manzi, PF is going to cut salaries by devaluing the Kwacha by 120% in a dununa reverse style and then increase them by 10%.
As Usual PF f00ls will jubilate when the price of fuel and mealimeal will go up by 70%.
If you qualified or not now is the time get out of Zambia for the sake your family.
This is like that Brexit crap, as in UK saying EU is stinking our borders but EU should give us first priority in everything good in the EU. Ba ba in a negotiation you can’t always get what you want. Zambia has been through this path before and we are all old enough to know the outcome last time. Do we even have capable negotiators at all. Is it the same team that was contracting the Eurobonds at 9%? I worry for mother Zambia. And some guy says you can’t eat education, businessmanship or economics. True but you have a lot of leverage having it than a mere cadre who only knows how to maim citizens for a negotiator!
Naikosa….. bola!! Bali mu chibe !!
As if Chakolwa had a choice! He just has to open his foul mouth wide and accept the bitter medicine after splurging on “massive infrastructure developments”. The poor will just have to walk on the tarred roads while dizzy with hunger. It is their choice.
wina azanyela matubvi kukamwa during the 5years term for jameson vodka chakolwa rungu…
As usual, playing to the gallery instead of putting together a strong economic team to negotiate with the IMF as one Felix Mutati proposed last week. You think IMF will be threatened by empty threats ati “we will not accept harsh conditions”! Who needs who more? IMF programmes are harsh as it is, so that is not negotiable and the earlier to start telling your carders the truth, the quicker they will adjust their lives to the tough times ahead. Not busy sugar-coating it! Once IMF arrives, agricultural subsidies, fuel subsidies, malaiti subsidies will all be removed. Brace yourselves for tough times bane, you can expect to buy fuel at K20 per litre and then the domino effect take over, ie all prices will go up. We could have avoided this if PF did not run down the economy; continue…
You have no option at all.
@ concerned
There is ONLY one option left, follow Mugabe in to economical oblivion!!!
Meal meal prices have short up today from 87 to 95 at average what more by January it will be K150.Kaya me i have 100 bags i will not sale them , i would rather give to my grand children.These children of now days want Lungu Chakolwa we know this man we have been drinking with him him he even urinates in trousers.Kaya fyenu.
He who pays the piper calls the tune.We shall dance to IMF tune Amos.You have no negotiating power right now.Just tell the people to brace for hard times and not wasting time sugar coating your messages.
Lets swear-in our president so we can start development programs. Upnd r losers & time wasters. Real Boma is known & needs to move quickly
“The money that is being injected into subsidies will be invested in growth areas of the economy,” Mr Chanda told a media briefing at State House on Tuesday.
Now which are those GROWTH AREAS Chanda?
1. Lungu going from too broke to afford nomination fees to TWENTY THREE Million Kwacha in the bank a year later?
2. Massive corruption in Government? And corrupt RDA contracts going to Chinese contractors?
3. New Ministries and Deputy Ministers ?
4. Load shedding hours?
5. Mealie meal prices?
ARE THOSE THE “GROWTH AREAS” you are talking about?
Please don’t try and cheat the People of Zambia again like you tried to cheat them with your rigged election. You may think they are all dull and foolish, but very soon you will realise that you are the biggest ********!
Does the government even remember the poor when not manipulating them?
The way forward is to be honest and the truth is once IMF are involved your bargaining power has already put you on the back foot.
Also having to deal with IMF in the first place is a sign you have insurmountable economic problems. Try being honest and not pretending you can swing things like you swing votes.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is demanding an external forensic audit of Mozambique’s public debt to regain investor confidence after a scandal over more than $2 billion in secret loans. Parliament and the attorney-general’s office have launched investigations into the undisclosed borrowing in 2013 and 2014 but the government has baulked at opening up its books to outside auditors.
However, the IMF, which suspended assistance when the loans came to light this year, has insisted on external scrutiny as a precursor to resuming financial aid to what is one of the world’s poorest countries.
“Investors are still interested in investing in Mozambique and this will bring foreign exchange, will bring dollars, but for this we need also the return of confidence,” The debt crisis…
The debt crisis and aid suspension has hit Mozambique hard, with its currency, the metical, losing nearly 40 percent against the dollar since January and economic growth slowing to below 4 percent.
With foreign debt soaring towards 100 percent of GDP, the government has been forced to revise its 2016 budget, which now shows a deficit equal to 11.3 percent of GDP, while the central bank hiked interest rates by 300 basis points in July to try to prop up the currency and contain inflation.
removal of subsidies on electricity and fuel, which are being targeted, will result in increase in the prices of essential commodities. How then will this not hurt the poor???
Am a visionless president.please HH, lets unite and work together for the good of all Zambians…
What is this Amos Chanda saying? I would rather he keeps quiet rather than insulting Zambians that the governmetn will reject IMF measures that will have an adverse impact on vulnerable people. Already he’s talked about the removal of fuel and electricity subsidies. Who do these measures hurt most, isn’t it the vulnerable? The IMF puts it’s cards on the table and its either you agree to play their game or you walk away. The situation in which we are, we cannot walk away because we are so messed up such that we do not even have a direction to take. So these people must stop politicking and tell people the truth. The coming times will be rough; there will be no free health services, education and others. There will be no medicines in hospitals. The price of fuel will go up, electricity…
Adya matubvi Amosi Chanda…
HH is a Satanist who is wasting time for Christians because of his pomposity and stupidity. The bastard is a foolish fool who has borrowed a lot of millions from Anglo-America. We know all his immoral tricks but it will not work. We are tired of him. Dropping Lungu and put him as president cant work. if he is not happy with the results, let the court call for fresh elections. infact it can be fair to redo the elections and close all these political innuendoes. If he fails again and he pertitions then something should be wrong with his head
Ok you have called the guy names but how does that help your cause……..the inevitable economy-cide of Zambia. IMF is actually on hand to help your demise.
Mr Amos the IMF and Government talks are a ‘negotiation’ they will explain what they can and cannot do as will you they don’t conclude matters in the press… please sometimes be educated on these things pick a phone call that son of the soil Chibamba Kanyama ask him how thing are done so that you when you next speak on IMF programs you look intelligent please
Speak when you can before your time runs out…., remember the concourt will be giving judgement in the coming days. If, and that is an if, Lungu gets retained, i m not sure you will be retained in ur position. However, if the elections are judged not fair, you dont have a job sir. This renders what you communicating to be useless. In short you dont have the authority to communicate policy
Zambian Judiciary, they have been bribed njala yinyokola you can’t trust them. If it was in Western Countries yes. Leaders step down on their own not African leaders.
A beggar cannot choose iwe Amos! Why call IMF if you and Edgar’s Team can sort out the economic shi**t we are in?
You will be smoked out of government by the same majority poor who were rejoicing your “stolen” victory.
PF has destroyed a once prosperous ZAMBIA. IMF has been invited because government has run out of money for Balance of Payments Support (BOPs). In JULY 2016, Zambia’s Trade Deficit was K473Million, which BOZ needs to “FILL UP” otherwise Kwacha starts to BLEED.
IMF will come & prescribe conditions necessary to service the loans, in the form of a STRUCTURAL ADJUSTMENT PLAN. These conditions will see government removing fuel, electricity, fertilizer subsidies & reducing expenditure on health, education & social welfare, and raising taxes among others whilst companies will start closing shop & people losing jobs, thus making it even harder for Govt to find money to pay IMF loans.
Then Govt will start to default on the IMF loans. The downside effect will be that Govt won`t be able to get…
#Marie-Anne bauze banvesese. They can recruit you though for free advice, if they will have it.
PF overspent beyond the capacity of the economy. Borrowed heavily without a plan. Now they want to give conditions to the IMF. Let’s see how far PF can run on a thin budget.
Zambians will have to get ready for tight days. It’s dununa reverse.
….The downside effect will be that Govt won`t be able to get money from the IMF, World Bank, the Chinese or any other monetary institutions for Balance of Payments (BOPs). This will increase inflation & then KWACHA will go the ZIMDOLLAR route.
LUNGU IS VISIONLESS!!!
Those who say another five years will be hell if the drinking president is allowed to take charge of the economy are correct. This pronouncement by Chanda is one of the conflicting statements coming out of their mouths concerning the IMF bailout. Just recently they were saying Lungu will make tough decisions. As if he has a choice. When you go to IMF or any Shylock, you have no choice but to abide by their draconian conditions to get their money. It’s the price you pay for being financially stup!d and resort to borrowing.
dunnuna reverse how could intelligent pipo surely dance to a song like that and how can a govt with right thinking pipo coin such a song for their election
I HAVE A SIMPLE SOLUTION:- All those that voted PF should just put on PF chitenges, put Full-Volume DUNUNA REVERSE SONG & dance till next morning. Then the pain caused by hunger brought by IMF will go away.
KIKIKIKIKI, BOLA NAIKOSA!!!
Amos Chanda does not know what he is talking about. We Zambians are more enlightened now on economic issues. I for one do not need to be taught by Mr. Chanda. It is well known where the IMF has gone and helped financially. Weather we like it or not AUSTERITY MEASURES WILL BE THERE, SO LET CHANDA SPARE US FROM ALL THESE LIES. YOU DONT NEED TO BE A WELL EDUCATED ECONOMIST TO UNDERSTAND THAT IMF HAS IT OWN CONDITIONS AND IF YOU DONT ABIDE THEY WILL WALK AWAY. THE PF GOVERNMENT WARNED WELL IN ADVANCE TO CHANGE THE WAY THE ECONOMY WAS AND IS BEING MANAGED AND UNFORTUNATELY THE DAMAGE HAS ALREADY BEEN DONE AND THE ONLY WAY TO CORRECT IT IS BY ENGANGING IMF. ZAMBIANS LET US BRACE OURSELVES FOR HARD TIMES AHEAD. AFTER TWO DECADES OF STRONG ECONOMIC PERFORMANCE UNDER MMD THE ECONOMY IS ON ITS…
@MR SURE it is even worse by voting for A gang leader and Dancing quene to JK,leaving a self made success busnissman and economist pantu mu Tonga.We shall see if you can eat tribe.
Let us be honest with ourselves, We were out of debt and within 3 years with have gone back to the same problem. Another bailout # HIPIC? ??? PF support how has you party accumulated so much debt with a short period of Time? I wonder why you support such a government! The Euro bonds how was the money used? Build the dual road in Kabwata to Shoprite Chilenje? Most of the shopping malls are owned my South African companies plus the ministers PF ministers who stole money from poor Zambia are hiding in those companies. I would be surprised hear that most PF ministers and Lungu are shared holders.
Broad consensus between Citizens & GRZ has to be reached first before GRZ engages IMF, just like the national budget, amended constitution, etc. Most Zambians are more enlightened on economic issues & citizens ideas may prove to be handy to Govt negotiating team unlike relying on ministers alone drawn from Parliament which is not assembled on economic but political criterion. It is time to engage Zambians outside the country & high commissioners too because they are endowed with plenty of ideas, experience & solutions but not only GRZ & IMF. Its economical issues like IMF bailout package where Zambians need to Exercise economic analysis in order to make right choices of available alternatives, not only the constitution & elections.
Hahah!! it laughable, maybe when we had SAP in place Amos was a toddler! We had the same rhethoric statements made by wamuyaya, he at one time psyched us that we can break away from IMF austerity measures laid on the table, the situation became worse and worse, where people were applying pounded dry cells, as shoe polish ending up with torn shoes! I remember how people would fight for empty card boxes discarded by ZCBC, just to go and resell. We were encouraged to eat ifyumbu natute for breakfast, we obliged cause there was not enough forex to buy wheat from abroad. Many qualified personnel in the civil service left the country for greener pastures, we had permanent Secretaries coming to Botswana on job hunting! Botswana got propelled to where it is because of the massive exodus, imagine…
i AGREE WITH YOU, LIFE WILL BE WORSE THAN KAUNDA DAYS, UBUNGA WILL BE MORE THAN 300 PER BAG. WAIT AND SEE IF WE MAKE THE WRONG MOVE IN THE COURTS ZAMBIA WILL GO BACK MORE THAN 20 YEARS
Amos, what’s your job description ?
Wanker
Anyone visiting the true rural parts of Zambia, as I do from time to time, will realise that the truly poor people of Zambia – perhaps a quarter or more of the population, have no money at all. Therefore they are immune to any moves either by the government of the IMF! It will be the middle-classes who will suffer the most because they have spare (albeit limited) financial resources. I do think that Mr Sure speaks the most common sense in these postings!
IMF will dictate the terms of the loan, no part of it will be favorable to Zambians as a whole. Ultimately by going to them govt has no other revenue available. Therefore they can posture all they like, or try a Greece that by the time Tspiras signed the deal it was a lot worse than the initial bailout. Mozambique are currently being audited to see whether they will actually offer them a bailout package. Ghana’s package is now being reviewed too.
cont. we had permanent secretaries, judges and other high ranking govt officials going job hunting in Botswana just to RU away from the hardship. Awe tachaweme! Prices of goods shot up through the roof! We had people pounding all sorts of leaves, to eat, abantu baletobela pawpaw! if at all you are luck to get a ka Pamela! many people were consigned to Zamfoot! no money for taxi! IMF temunobe! We must prepare our people now, @ let us adjust, cause for sure prices will sky rocket. PF govt must start preparing the people, otherwise the same cadres attacking people ngayakosa, they are the same people who will cause problems for them!
This ugly little twot, as though he has any poers to stop the IMF from wanking and shooting all over the country. I just hope some of the shoot lands in his mouth and he gladly swallows!
ONLY FOOLS WILL BELIEVE HIS WORDS. CAN YOU GO TO BARCLAYS AND COME UP WITH YOUR OWN RULES AND THINK YOU WILL GET THE LOAN. YOU DANCE TO IMF OR FORGET THE LOAN, HE IS LYING BETWEEN HIS TEETH THINKING WE ARE ALL INDE BWANA . HE IS AS STUPID AS HIS BLOATED FACE.
Happy with your own confession that you destabilized our economy hence the reason you have rushed to IMF. Please note thats the reason many of us voted against you.
The IMF needs Zambia…More than Zambia needs the IMF
Stand your ground President Lungu. Do not agree to:
1) Removal of subsidies
2) Increased electricity tariffs
3) Reduction in civil servants
4) Kwacha devaluation
5) Increased in expat quota for the mines
6) Reduction in mineral royalty, and
7) IMF spies infiltrating our ministries
After FIVE years of “unprecedented development”, close to US$ 9 billion of irrational borrowing in the name of “development”, you are telling us that “…There will be nothing that will be accepted that will make life for the poor more miserable than it is now,…”!!!
One thing you are right, life cannot be more miserable than now!
Let us face the reality and be honest in our thinking. Why should we go back to the HIPIC days. IMF will not will not let that money come so easily. It will be at a harsh cost. Ba Amos Chanda please remember where we are coming from. Remember how much efforts was spent to cancel the debts, again we go back to the same roots. Who told you that IMF will sort out our economical hardships? Stop politicize these issues. Zambia has brains if combined, the current economical crisis can just be a walkover. The problem is that we spend too much time discussing politics, insteady of fixing the economy.
Remember SAP or Structural Adjustment Program, did Zambia have a say? No it did not. So who are you fooling Mr Politician? It’s a shame just after years of the mining boom, you have gone back to IMF with a begging bow asking for alms. It’s a shame this is gross mismanagement of Zambia’s economy by incompetent and lazy politicians and minority elite.
The position of Press Advisor has been converted into Government Spokesman this is not your job iwe Amos go and speak to the people who made that post honorable on how conduct yourself no state etiquette its open your mouth any how
The baseline analysis by the IMF will show that Zambia has has got into this mess because:
a). State House executives (including Mr. Amos Chanda) are in positions several kilometres above their depths;
b). The open corruption and thieving (by the top 200 people) in the public service is responsible for US$ 3.7 billion of the total debt of US$ 8 billion contracted by Mr Chikwanda in the past 4 years;
c). The Zambian economy cannot grow because there is no plan, written or unwritten, for growth;
d). The so-called top 200 public service employees work 25% for the public and 75% for themselves in pursuits such as thieving, real estate, commercial undertakings, drinking,etc;
e). The public service is totally dysfunctional partly because its headship is ignorant about statecraft;
f)…
Remember SAP or Structural Adjustment Program, did Zambia have a say? No it did not. So who are you fooling Mr Politician? It’s a shame just after years of the mining boom, you have gone back to IMF with a begging bow asking for alms. It’s a shame this is gross mismanagement of Zambia’s economy by incompetent and lazy politicians and minority elite.