Tuesday, October 15, 2024

A Balanced Take on President Hichilema’s Speech

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In his recent address to Parliament, President Hakainde Hichilema offered a comprehensive overview of Zambia’s current socio-economic landscape. His speech underscored key initiatives aimed at addressing the country’s challenges, particularly those stemming from the El Niño-induced drought, which has severely impacted agriculture, water supply, and energy production. The President’s emphasis on resilience, innovation, and sustainability is laudable, especially with the allocation of K41.9 billion for drought relief, debt servicing, and clearing fuel arrears. Furthermore, his focus on agricultural reforms, energy diversification, and macroeconomic stability reflects a forward-thinking agenda in line with Zambia’s long-term development goals.

However, while the President spoke optimistically about these initiatives, some gaps remain. For instance, the challenges of inflation, high interest rates, and currency depreciation continue to weigh heavily on ordinary Zambians. Despite his mention of a 5.3% average GDP growth over the past three years, there are questions regarding whether this growth has translated into tangible improvements in living standards for most citizens. The importation of maize and increasing financing for irrigation are positive steps, but food security remains a pressing concern for many.

The President’s speech also highlighted positive developments in mining, with substantial investments such as the US$1.1 billion at Mopani Copper Mines and US$2 billion at Mingomba Mine. These investments are essential for the country’s economic recovery, especially for creating jobs and revitalizing mining communities. However, critics argue that the benefits of these investments are not felt quickly enough, and concerns about environmental degradation and the slow pace of job creation persist. The lack of a clear roadmap for youth employment also remains a critical issue, especially since unemployment was one of the key problems his administration promised to address.

On governance, President Hichilema reaffirmed his commitment to human rights and fighting corruption. While the recent recovery of assets worth US$30.8 million from corrupt activities is encouraging, concerns about slow justice delivery, especially in anti-corruption cases, remain. Additionally, there are growing calls for the repeal of certain restrictive laws, such as the Cybersecurity and Cyber Crimes Act, which some feel stifle freedom of speech and media

From an infrastructure standpoint, his focus on aviation, education, and ICT infrastructure is commendable. The construction of a second runway at Kenneth Kaunda International Airport and new communication towers demonstrates a clear commitment to boosting Zambia’s connectivity and digital economy. However, despite the expansion of the education system, the quality of education and the implementation of vocational training programs still need improvement to adequately equip the youth for the workforce.

In conclusion, while President Hichilema’s speech points to significant strides in addressing Zambia’s multifaceted challenges, there are areas that require more robust interventions. His administration’s policies will need to deliver more immediate results, particularly on economic stabilization, human rights, and youth unemployment, if the optimism expressed in his speech is to resonate with the wider Zambian populace. As we move forward, it will be critical for the government to prioritize inclusivity, transparency, and accountability to ensure that the benefits of growth and development are felt by all citizens.

By Liam Natala

7 COMMENTS

  1. Construction of another runway at KK airport is most stupid and misplaced costly idea. we don’t have air traffic congestion at KK airport to warrant this idea now. Example Heathrow has about two planes landing and two taking off almost every two minutes for about 23 hrs every day. KK airport don’t even do more than 10 big planes landing and taking off in a day and you say you want to build another run way?

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    • @john pardon me I’m not privy to how old you are but during my youth aviation routes considered Zambia as the cost effective hub to southern hemisphere destinations but the scanty airport infrastructure at KKIA lost it to OT Johannesburg

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  2. @ John

    Please let us show respect to our leaders even if you belong to PF, the mentality you have clearly is what has brought us to where we are today where a lot of people like you advised our former leaders to forget about building more hydroelectricity stations because at that time according to was not a priority. See now what we are going through!

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    • What has changed now. While in opposition, HH and his followers were saying the construction of the “sausage” airport was a waste of funds and unnecessary.

    • @ Peace Maker

      To cosider building second runaway at LUN there is absolutely no ecconomical justification and that is a 100% truth. Nothing to do with party affiliation or sympathy.

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  3. @Peace Maker, John has not shown disrespect. To say that an idea is shupit is not an insult. The idea od building another runway at KKIA is really daft. If we really want to develop Zambia, we should be thinking about intercity railway connections. It will take 50 years for Zambia to have the same tourist traffic as South Africa or even Kenya. As for air traffic, expanding regional flights within the country would be better. Today, you cannot fly to Chipata. This is retrogressive. Frequent scheduled flights to Mongu, Mansa, Kasama and Mansa do not exist.

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