They are serious doubts about the exact figure Zambia owes in debt because the Patriotic Front Government has not included some of the projects done using borrowed resources says UPND Chairperson for Finance Committee, Dr Situmbeko Musokotwane.
Dr Musokotwane who is also former Minister of Finance said this when he featured on MUVI TV assignment on Sunday evening.
He challenged the PF government to come out in the open and tell the nation why they did not include the amount for Kafue Gorge Lower which under MMD government was supposed to be done by Public Private Partnership and not funded by external debt.
He also said the amount for the proposed Serenje to Chipata via Petauke railway line including the amount for Lusaka – Ndola dual carriage way and other huge amount of debts have not been included.
Dr Musokotwane said if all projects as announced by the same Patriotic Front government were included the total debt would amount to US $17 billion.
“come out clean on this issue and explain why amounts spent on projects announced such as the formation of Zambia Airways are not included in the debt mentioned,” said Dr Musokotwane.
He has appealed to Zambians to take keen interest in the reckless borrowing by the Patriotic Front government because it has led the country into heavy debt and this has a serious effect on the lives of many Zambians.
Dr Musokotwane said Zambians have to take the issue of debt seriously because all revenue collected will go towards servicing of debt instead of building schools, more health centres, universities or even increasing civil servants salaries making.
We as Humans do not know what we are doing, in general but the case of African is deplorable.
Musokotwane is DESPERATE and is irrelevant.
He is a man who has talked a lot and achieved little.
The Government has been accurate on this and I would trust them more than this Man.
What tribe is he any way?
I am pulling my hair with anger!
Tahnks
BB2014,2016
“I AM VISION-LESS, I HAVE NO VISION” declared one candidate. This is what he meant.
Instead of borrowing for productive sectors, you borrow for useless things like the 42x$42m wheel-burrows.
$1-Billion pumped into clothing industry can boost farmers, agric officers, ginneries, textiles, garment producers, boutiques, models, tailors, designers, dye producers, etc can create the 500,000 jobs we were lied to by the VISION-LESS corrupt Drunkard.
Instead, K10-BILLION ($1-Billion) will go to debt servicing in 2018 alone.
When Situmbeko was persuaded to take up a post in the Treasury after his stints at BoZ and Lesotho, one agreement was he was to maintain and better the conditions he had enjoyed prior to his return to Zambia. He was pocketing up to $30,000 monthly on a donor funded contract!
That too was borrowed money and it may have been missed on the list of loans the country has and should be added also …
Bo Situmbeko … please chill a bit. The smart people of the Zambian Enterprise don’t have a debt crisis. The World Bank confirmed that last week, even encouraged more borrowing under strict guidance.
Fitch & Fitch ratings maintain that our Zambian Enterprise is still a viable corporation and our CFO, Mutati is maintaining so, what is this all about? Please advise … per capita the good ole USA owes more debt than we do …
We can actually pay off this debt and restructuring is also a viable option … in fact if Felix does a great job, he can use sophisticated book runners to debenture some of it into shares of ZCCM-IH.
Overall, like the Kasai would say TUTALIPA (we will pay)
Dear PF, please don’t be to naive. This debt thing could eat you up, even if you try to jump out of Pa Bwato!
Do we need to remind you that you could be prosecuted for stealing these huge sums of money Zambia has borrowed during the time you have been in office?
Where is the ACC? Please jump on these claims and prove that they are wrong. For how long are these allegations going to be ignored? $42M, Ambulances, Mukula, now this.
If I’m right even bakateka said there’s corruption. Please do what we pay you for.
Why is the National Debt secret kanshi? The Minister of Finance should issue a Statement and clear the air. Is Zambia’s debt $7.2, 13, 17 billion? Why is Hon Felix Mutati concealing the debt figure? He can hide the Fire but the Smoke will comeout sooner or later.
The Minister of Finance is MMD, the defacto President is RB, the other senior government officials are MMD. How Sata wasted his energy and efforts in dislodging the MMD and then the efforts were this futile is regrettable. What is even more regrettable is how the majority of the Zambians let this happen and allowed it to carry on. SATA you probably did not even deserve to die this eary for these docile Zambians.
Mr walk the talk, the very humble president should answer Dr Musokotwane’s questions not issuing statements to protect incompetent PF Ministers who have nothing to show about their performance in constituents. This president will leave a very bad legacy. How honestly can they borrow that much? Doctor Musotwane forgot to mention Zambia Airways yet to be re-launched balikongola twatwaishibafye.
True and when are those ministers paying back the money they were paid illegally?
Wait a minute! Why cant the same former minister tell the nation how much money was borrowed when he was at the helm of Ministry of finance? The best he should have done is to tell us how much they borrowed when he was in office since this is for the public domain as he has said. For me he was part and parcel to the huge debt he has just mentioned……come out in the open and tell us iweeeeee
Ndolesha fye what else can we say? Remember his government sold KCM without receiving money until the buyer sold copper from the same mine and paid from the profits realized.
True these chaps behave like the Republic of Zambia only started under Lungu. Musokotwane start by how much debt you left as MMD then we shall ask PF how much of this has been paid and how much more they have accumulated and the plans for repayment.
Time is running out for the opposition start selling your manifestos and plans for Zambia under your administration. While it is good to look at the weakness of the PF, Let it not be the only occupation. Please sell what you will do better. We are sick and tired of the fire tender, corruption rhetoric etc.
Exactly, I would expect the Former Finance Minister to argue with figures: Show us how much debt you left, how much we are paying and then add up what you think PF has borrowed, less repayments – then present a figure that you presents the true situation. Then PF will be forced to give us the true situation. Besides, why can’t you bring that up in Parliament.
ulelolesha fye zoona.
Zambia had come out of debt crisis during Magande as Finance Minister. Musokorwane left the external debt at less than $3bn
WHY DOES THIS WORRY YOU.LOOK BACK DURING YOUR TERM TAMWALEKONGOLA NO KUBWESHA SHIMO MWAFILWA UKUBWESHA.MONEY BORROWED IS MEANT FOR DEVELOPEMENT AND EVERYONE IS THERE TO SEE.TALK TO KIDS WHO WHERE THERE WHEN YOU WERE MINISTER OF FINANCE,ELYO BA KA TO KATOLIKA BAMYA FWAKO UKUPAPATA.
It appears 2021 is too far for the ageing Upnd cadres. They are not sure they will be a live or strong enough to participate in national affairs.
Infact, he did not hide true figure during budget presentation, he correctly said US17billion and later retracted to 7 biilion just to cover his ss. We are aware about the figure, Lungu thinks he is clever but soon rather than later he will pay a heavy price for taking us for granted.
SOME OF THESE FORMER MINISTERS SHOULD JUST SHUT UP..THEY ARE PART AND PARCEL OF THE NONSENSE WE ARE GOING……
WE ARE GOING THROUGH
Most of u miss the argument. Not that govt does not borrow. Govt borrows, except the pf borrowing is way beyond what resources of this country can sustain, ie, pay back the loans and leave enough to attend to development needs for the country. In simple words, ur salary/ income is K500 and u borrow K100, 000 payable in 12 moons. Thats pf for u. Not that musokotwane and his govt didnt borrow. What schools do u go to kansi?
That is the PF kaponya koswe rat for you , borrowing like there is no tomorrow , way beyond our means , they think Zambia can borrow inexhustable amounts as long as they mention development….
The real problem is that there is dispute with the administration about the true extent of the debt.
PF have over borrowed. It is an undisputed fact. If we do not say something, Zambia will sink.
If I remember correctly Mutati had mentioned a figure of 17 but a World Bank official said it was 7. Just check the archives.
I think the main issue should be to make PF accountable with that borrowed money. No matter how high you jump the fact remains they have contracted the debt whether 7billion or 17billion, have they / are they using that money for the purpose it was intended, thats what this party in ‘waiting’ should concentrate on. These knee-jerk reactions to over priced goods is not good enough because again its a REACTION after they have done it already. Then you wonder where could all these people have been when the scoping was being done,the over priced budgeting etc.. Lets have the opposition who will keep PF looking over their shoulders with every decision BEFORE they make it!
Follow up on each and every project PF has announced with monetary figures and the source of that money. Simply coming out in the media to speculate what even the bloggers here have already speculated is just not good enough. Lets have men and women with the heart for Zambia follow up on all these borrowed money and ask the necessary questions to ensure the money is utilised accordingly. If they dont answer keeping on reminding them and exposing them. After all if any party happen to take over a ruined, beyond repair economy, it will be equally difficult to produce results while the people will expect results to campaign promises. Can you provide free education from grade 1 to 12 with no money in the treasury??
It is true. Bakoswe mumupoto will leave Zambia bankrupted, and the next generation in poverty because they are the ones that will have to repay the borrowed money that these thieves have stolen!
They are literally stealing the food out of our children’s mouths! They have no shame at all.
Kambwili and Kalaba have woken up these sleepy bulls. Now he can smell getting back into govt.
They know these PF kwaks have split their votes.
look who is talking. in his time people barred money at their farms. Liato’s case. Shame
Good memory.
There have tried to shut down lungus Gov. in so many ways including economics The Infrastructure spend in returns is much more than what has been borrowed if only the Gov. can up the Growth and Productivity
Since you are economists check you OECD website and see how much countries that have invested equity and debt to create that solid base quality for Investments
What other alternatives could have been there to develop so many schools hydro’s roads and hospitals that people craved for in so years since Colonial Should be people be saying well we have investment and lets look at other equation productivity and maintenance to cement and…
and create reinvestments
The performance of Zambia’s economy and attraction of investors that will result in growth that will improve the employment prospects and quality of life requires investments in infrastructure of quality Only then will the ZRA and Fiscal including Monetary improve The quality of Infrastructure was so poor that most Investors preferred to go to neighbours
The issue of sustainability of debt is an issue of productivity resulting from increased output from those debt investments and if Zambians focus now on productivity they can double the Growth in GDP as can be seen in potential that can swallow over the period of 5…
of 5 years this 17 Billion Kwacha assumed if you know how big the Zambian economy is and what potential there is in the GDP growth projects within the global economic prospects if only you can activate
Thus said the minister of Finance has been shown prudency He has set out his plans on how to deal with Both the marketable and non marketable debt He issued a statement to that effect that he was to present to parliament a comprehensive Profile or portfolio of Zambia’s debt and GRZ good repayment plans He has acknowledged the need to manage further debt contraction and align terms in the euro bonds
in global economies when you have…
commodities that have no value due to access costs and scarcity of capital ,and you are presented with capital opportunities to tap into those commodities You make use of it but making sure you see the future and real options but at the same time consolidating your investments to know when to slow down and create returns for reinvestments as you unwind those risks in debt There is no country in the global let alone the OECDs that registered GDP growth without doing what Zambia has done but of course taking risk //
I am afraid the over inflated prices of those projects and the fact most were not immediate production generating projects will catchup with Zambia before the repayments start biting……..most of those roads in the combonies are being washed way already…….
Right now ZAF are importing uniforms worth $62 million , while Zambia grows cotton and has millions of school leavers without jobs some of whome could have been trained to sew those uniforms and produce dyes ……..we have a vast market for solar panels and other products , we should have been assembling and exporting by now……we also have a vast market for fire prevention equipment like smoke alarms and extinguishers….we should be making by now…
It is not right for GRZ to come out and say we have created an enabling environment so let the private sector get on with it , no that is laziness by the PF rats in GRZ , when they don’t see any tenders yo be had you don’t see them….
The problem with zambians is you are so supportive of the wrong things, the man here is fighting for us here so we can know the truth but mumushuta mudala he is former minister yes but the debt grew when sata came in power
The opposition is fast asleep! What are they doing in parliament? These are the pertinent issues we expect them to interrogate and make PF thieves accountable for. The opposition MPs are complicit in this mis – management scheme by this cabal of shameless plunderers, by their silence.
So they will sleep when in government if given the chance?! I’m afraid we can’t have them in government in 2021. Let them continue to sleep in opposition where they belong for keeps and let PF continue with the good work for which the opposition is so hateful and jealous.
And where is my fly swatter?
Taking risk analysis understanding the geopolitical risks presented in those debts appropriately like the minister is Doing
The Zambian economy has seen the activation of life and performance from its underperformance since 1997 chiefly because of these infrastructure spend having depended on infrastructure projects to avoid the severe effects of the commodities and financial crisis that could have confirmed many to untold miseries Mule Tasha
Its time now to cement and consolidate the gains on infrastructure spend and up productivity to swallow that level of debt in 17 Billion in all sectors of potential investments and still make the Gov. and the economy run and…
avoid stalling since we know that the government revenues may not be adequate but carefully cash flowed We would want to hear the alternative methods of Financing Gov. much more given the NDPs ??
Nothing is clear or stightward with these theives in PF …..they don’t give figures …and when asked about money expenditure of money borrowed they all plead ignorant….
Right now ask lungu or anyone to disclose lungus salary and allowances and no one knows….or the total perks of MPs , no one will talk……they all theives in PF starting with lungu…
IMF couldn’t have missed such a detail. US$10bn is too massive a figure to hide. Our GDP borders around US$23 and I think it would be nearly impossible to hide a figure almost half of what we produce as a country. In Europe or America, one would struggle to hide a figure as low as US$10m, but US$10bn??? I don’t think so!!!
US$23 is a ridiculously low GDP Citizen. Actually, I have it in my pocket. Zambia is in my pocket!
@ Zambian Citizen, Mozambique hid away BILLIONS of debt from the IMF for years!
“the International Monetary Fund had suspicions about Mozambique’s hidden loans almost a year before the government finally admitted it had undisclosed debt, email exchanges between the fund and the government show. The communications were seen by Bloomberg and confirmed by the IMF”
Lungu and his PF thieves are doing exactly the same!
@Mbili: US $23bn …thanks for the observation.
The CIA factbook reports Zambia’s debt at 56% of GDP. This is at variance with what Mutati reported. You can check this out at the CIA world fact book page.
Oh my God, look who is talking, Musokotwane? He was a Minister of Finance and never financed anything, records dont lie. anyway, such characters can only belong to a tribal party UPND.
@Trying to Shutdown Lungus Gov, you are right. I think there are more benefits in the infrastructure we can tap into than complaints. Let us see opportunity in this massive infrastructure development.
Whether 7 or 17Bn does not make a difference. The bottom-line is that we are in debt (nkhongole/kaloba).
This does not mean corruption should be entertained.
You in UPND keep singing about corruption. There is no corruption to the tune you have been made to believe by opportunists like Kambwili and Kalaba. One is a hoe and the other is too forgetful.
Categories of debt might be varied. In that case, it would be ridiculous to make a sweeping statement about public debt. As for Zambia Airways, it is about profit and people. Profit margins are seemingly small but employment creation capacity building remain intact. The collapse of the then Zambia Airways was triggered by the collapse of the economy. The economy collapsed because of political interference, including the liberation struggle in the region, unfavorable market conditions for mineral exports and even mismanagement by zealous technocrats. At the moment government can purchase tickets for government officials. At the moment, private sector needs to come have a balanced sourcing strategy that includes Zambia Airways. You are always welcome aboard Zambia Airways. Support your…
The collapse of the then Zambia Airways was triggered by the collapse of the economy. The economy collapsed because of political interference, including the liberation struggle in the region, unfavorable market conditions for mineral exports and even mismanagement by zealous technocrats. At the moment government can purchase tickets for government officials. At the moment, private sector needs to come have a balanced sourcing strategy that includes Zambia Airways. You are always welcome aboard Zambia Airways. Support your local sheriff.
Its very easy to estimate the Zambian Gross Debt portfolio both marketable or non marketable concessional or non concessional or intra Gov We have seen the analysis provided to IMF by minister recently It could be 7 billion or 13 Billion but what is important is to know real options that you have as you invest in solid infrastructure that will great the economies looking at the legacy infrastructure previously on which the economy was to grow
We need to avoid cases of shortermism approach or what others will call piss poor economics as usual by politicians This is in by no means to say blindly signing and investing those debts without clear reinvestments…
It should be understood onset that Private Finance initiatives have also been illusive for Zambia and evidence of them being cheaper in fees and construction costs poor
The minister though should be encouraged to make public the Debt portfolio clearly outlining the categories and interest in the tenures even before tabling before parliament to allay any fears
He used to report the same way when he was the finance minister what is it that he want to tell the Zambians now.
That is why Zambia and other African countries have remained underdeveloped You need to understand the risks and see greater opportunities beyond the debt sustainability and rather emphasise hard work and productivity because there will always be a challenge in Africa and Zambia in particular in balancing developments without shorting the levels of debt ,Countries that have well arbitraged the debt sustainability have fast tracked their economies by investing in infrastructure such as water and sanitation, agricultural,energy,education,healthy,transport and others including local Governance creating that quality of infrastructure needed for growth and reinvestments
The…
level of Zambia’s debt true should reflect the Zambian economic prospects but those prospects still untapped and below value in most cases and its only through investing in Zambia’s assets and productivity that the country will be taken off this debt matrix and not by not investing
Even then volume of Zambia’s Investments is much lower than similarly to be competitive for capital
One would need also to look at the funding opportunities or outlook to 2025 and see weather Zambia is really trading the opportunity cost and creating those sectors to reinvest We are tired on Development and attractiveness for FDIs that always rank Zambia below par in basic…
rank Zambia below par in basic infrastructure and the future could even be more blink if not done now
Then also its not true that money is being spend on consumption we could have seen the Velocity of money already on the streets and agreements may not closed
It’s the people to blame, ourselves!! We do not follow up such matters and make relevant noises. We come here to battle it out on here!!
Zambia needs to move own from the same Political electioneering of developmental projects that people have been hearing for long-time since 1964 “always roads and schools hospitals coming up as election agendas including power Its time those with Economic rate of return were done given the flexible financing plans as opposed to leaving it for the future so that years that come infrastructure is scaled down as GDP is refocused to financing and other challenges not the same old songs of road development bla bla
Given the financing which multilateral will pledge more than USD 3 billion for a single project in Zambia and how is the future like in…
Infact these financing and development projects are supposed to be basic necessary things for people as reflective and never a preoccupation
Given the financing which multilateral will pledge more than USD 3 billion for a single project in Zambia and how is the future like in Financing such global as conditions and of these mult and banks tighten conditions reflecting the global So if someone gives you 1 Billion Dollars fact in and make use it wisely to grow the economy and bit the growth in debt levels
On the contrary infact countries like Zambia whose assets and potential endowments remains untapped and are investing using various forms of debt and equity in infrastructure would see an improvement in parity conditions overtime beating the risk averse debt sustainability approach over the long-term The shortermmism is also the opposite but this will call for increased output and productivity resulting from grown economy from infra spend as jobs becomes cyclical and revenues from infra
Thus said only if only well invested and matched with term sheets
Zambia’s GDP is a mere $US 23bn and our debts amount to $US17bn meaning Zambia is an unviable business with 75% debt and a shameful 25% assets.
That GDP is it current prices potentially exhaustive or the infra being spend on of such a poor quality that the value created does not exceed the USD13 Billion Zambia has the potential to grow this meagre GDP of USD 25 Billion comparable to some company to register above 3 folds the USD 13 Billion
Sometimes laziness .confirmation bias and same work culture locks in the potential for people and the economy to rebalance its Debt to equity orientation
if you were to sell Zambia as a business and its assets in people and resources you would to sell it for USD 17 Billion Dollars as if its a company foreclosed There is potential unrealised still to untapped for those who knows how to value
Developed countries like Austria Canada Us and China of significant GDP yet Gearing levels worse than Zambia are still viable and still counting on Zambia’s contribution to their economies If they register growth Zambia registers similarly
Please leave the working government alone! HaJealousy is a bad trait in leadership!
This is the main cause of poverty in Zambia.PF f-oo-ls borrow and then steal the cash.
Dr Musokotwane, you are contradicting yourself, and this is maily as a result of desperation on your new found position in the UPND. You are saying “the PF will be servicing debts insteady of building more schools, hospitals more health centres, universities or even increasing civil servants salaries”. What did you do when you where minister in the MMD? did you bring development or you were just sitting and hoping that the development of Zambia will come organically? Are you aware that PF as developed infrastructure within the shortest possible time compared to you guys when you waited like voutures for development to come by default? It is a shame on you to pretend you have knowledge of capacity to develop anything just because you are in opposition?
On the contrary as proven elsewhere infra structure Investments pays off itself in the long-term and the Investments being done from those debts to tap in the Zambian potential will create those REVENUES beyond the meagre USD GDP 23 Billion if not near double the output Zambia has realised marginal potential as a result of the Infra spending 10 years after the global financial crisis and those low copper commodities prices
There are so many real options in repayments from investing in roads side by side with the low fuel and road tax and tolling system for example The same opportunities also for education energy water and others
2018 will be an…
exciting year for realising the economic gains from those investments Prospects are good for the global and businesses have come out for new business opportunities looking to countries like Zambia, this can be seen also in the sentiments expressed by CEO in the latest PWC CEO report of 2018
when they have completed all those projects in the NDps they will scale down and rebalance to grow the economy and maintain those assets created as the debt is tackled It could be in a single year or 2 but the strategy can address from a stronger and better competitive footing without heating up the economy
Awe these loans you are getting and sharing the money is not good at all. You are leading in chinese loans to start with. China will start controlling zambia and they will demand something which will directly badly affect the citizens. Mr E.C.Lungu and the team, the consequences of the loans you are getting will land this country in trouble in future. Learn to be self sufficient. To prove that you are a capable leader, emulate Tanzania’s president plans not just getting loans from china and stealing. Ask those countries around the indian and pacific oceans which got loans from china and failed to pay, are now being controlled by china. Very soon you will land this country in problems. Why did you stand as president of zambia if you knew that you lack vision?????Hence the song by…
There is always diversification in accumulation of Investments taking the geopolitical implications and state capture Zambians cannot allow that to go unnoticed as seen from you good observations
There are safe guards in place to mitigate the impacts of large accumulation of debt for Investments or debt burden as you may say that you say would impact service delivery for the future its the contrary rather . Those burdens that includes cost of servicing the debts ,interest rates shocks or durations resulting in poor credit quality or down grades as you may call it have been taken care of
There is a plan as seen by Gov. to mitigate those fears by diversifying the…
portfolio of debt geopolitically There are legistrative measures being addressed to enact laws Governing contraction and performance of various portfolios of debt Government has a long-term strategy on how it is addressing and will address the infra contracted debt in the current and projected debt accumulations It has a worked out workable long-term debt reduction plan that clearly spells out how it will achieve a target of reducing the net debt to GDP from its current 60% to 30 % over the near to long-term
Gov. understands the China mode of investing in Africa and its on top of things to safe guard the Zambian sovereign interests it understands the effects…
of High fiscal deficit which are being driven by WEAK REVENUE MOBILIZATION due to SMALLER ECONOMY and SLOWER THAN POTENTIAL GROWTH prospects that have generated huge financing needs coupled with tight monetary policy and the need to promote private sector involving in Investing in Zambia’s economic prospects especially local Investors
Just asking, how and why did this good doctor leave the MMD? Don’t tell me ,I know….someone close to him died and another a distant person took over.
Okay then GDP has not always been a measure that is effective to measure the progress of quality of the economy and peoples life
Loser!