FINANCE Deputy Minister Miles Sampa has said the Government is capable of paying back US$750 million Eurobond debt because the infrastructure development it will invest the money in are viable.
Mr Sampa said the proceeds from the Eurobond would be utilised on promoting infrastructure projects that would consequently increase economic activities and generate taxes.
“We would not have gone on the international capital market if we were not capable of paying the Eurobond. We have proposed to invest the proceeds into the energy, transport and hospitals. I know some of you will be saying why invest in social sectors but the University Teaching Hospital (UTH) needs help in terms of the rehabilitation,” he said.
Speaking at the KPMG Budget analysis meeting in Lusaka yesterday, Mr Sampa said the infrastructure development embarked on by the Government using the proceeds from the Eurobond would help increase the economic activities in the country, while generating taxes.
Zambia made her inaugural entry on the international capital market in September this year and raised US$750 million at a price that is one of the lowest ever for a debut issue for a Sub-Sahara African Country.
Mr Sampa explained: “When we opened the bids we were offered US$11 bilion and when we took the average price it was the lowest ever, better than Spain, Italy and Portugal and this is Zambia.
“We need to be proud because Zambia is a peaceful country and we had just had elections and changed the President and we have 72 languages but we are still peaceful.”
Recently, World Bank urged the Government to quickly and effectively spend the proceeds from the Eurobond on productive projects which will bring about growth and employment opportunities.
World Bank country director, Zambia Malawi and Zimbabwe Kundhavi Kadiresan said carrying on the proceeds from the Eurobond without using it would cost Government a lot of money per year, hence the need to speed up the plan for their absorption.
[Times of Zambia]
why borrow if you can raise that money from your local natural resources? that is the question kilometre has failed to answer from HH. In any case this burdern will be repaid by zambians who were not even consulted when contracting this silly loan by kilomtre sampa.
If you don’t borrow to spend on capital project now you will have to wait for one financial year to raise the money you need. This means delaying planned capital investment for one yeark year. That is why it is also prudent to borrow. Borrowing is about capacity expansion. you have a bigger budget and quickly reslize your dream quickly.
What capital projects would have been delayed? That is hogwash my friend. This is an irresponsible government. Maybe the previous government that started this whole eurobond process had plans. The current government seems to have borrowed just for the kick. You need to recall those bonds as soon as possible before we go down deep into debt once more. By the way, the government needs to disclose how much fees it paid for the whole process. It is probably about 50 percent of the money that was raised. Does that make sense? I think it is stupid.
I see Miles Sampa plunked with goats’ intestines one of these days.
The boy is very shallow. And by the way enough of this Eurobond nonsense! No a day passes without some PF bunkum telling us how the money is going to be utilized. Yesterday it was Guy “Swine Fever” Scott telling us that it will be used as a line of credit to pay farmers for the Maize they delivered to FRA ages ago! I wouldn’t be suprised to hear that the $750m had actually “grown feet” as we say in my motherland!
We will do it our way.MMD did it their way.HH will also do it his way in hell.
HH is just confused about two issues: taxing now or taxing later. You can tax now to raise the 750m or tax later to pay the 750m. It is the same.
It is easier to borrow now and invest and then tax later. I dooubt if it is feasible to raise 750m in taxes at one fell short. A big assumption Miles is making is that all the expenses will be on investment and not consumption. That is taking the country miles too far. The biggest problem is that the government has not been transparent about this bond: they have not told the zamnbian society how much it costed them to raise and what will be the interest rates on this instrument.
There is shame in borrowing for useless spending but there is sense in borrowing to realize profitable achievement. Borrowing increases the ccapacity to expand operational levels. It is a ggod thing to borrow and use borrowed funds productively. We have the means to pay back the loans. Even lender are careful when lending. They don’t to those with no means to pay back. PF will definately use the borrowed money productively. We have experienced men, they know what is at stake. Some remarks in the opposite are unfounded. There is just instability in the opposition camp, busy with campaigns even when they know elections are far enough. Let devrlopment happen or we loose it all of us as a people. Give each other chance. What happpens to you if you will not be given chance to rule?
Why is the deputy finance minister allowed to go out and borrow these huge amounts of money without any moral responsibility of burdening future generations with debt – where is the Finance Minister and the Prez? Is PF using the naïveté of the young man to plunder? He can not state where the money to repay this debt will come from, for staters , the number of tax payers in Zambia is less that 600k people.
No bank will lend you money now unless the interest rates are favourable, tell us Ba Bwana the rate at which we are borrowing. Why is there this misplaced concept that when you have been elected to a political office, you are suddenly endowed with wisdom and intellect? The young man suddenly thinks he is the most intelligent , god sent economist . You will burn your fingers!!!
Analysis yamafi iwe.u are talking rubbish
We can raise money through Zambia Revenue Authority. Except by the time we collect taxes it would be at later time that we can spend what we would raise by tax. Because we want to do debelopmental work now, we have to borrow like we have done. It is just give us more financial capacity to improve ourselves through infrastructure build up. We have capacity to pay back slowly over the loan period. this gives us room to be liquid financially. The deput minister did not do it alone. There is govt protocal that is followed. Take your time in opposition but hurry up, form govt and you will see some of these things.
Miles, shut up, the ARVS chocking you, stop spreading the virus to those young girls, including Victoria whom you have impregnated!
In Sampa i see Sata and in Sata i see no constructive reasoning hence rushed deciding and in the process earning the name man of action. put your man of action into a good way then will have sanity in Zambia. why carry kaseba to plead for Health Equipment don’t you have a Health Minister. stop mixing Bedroom life with running the Country. Most of these guys making noise in PF are suffering from effects of poor Quality ARV’s i.e Sampa and Kabimba.
ZAMBIA HAS SEEN A FACELIFT UNDER PRESIDENT SATA AND HON.MILES SAMPA AS DEPUTY MINISTER OF FINANCE, THE IMF AND WORLD BANK HAVE A LOT OF RESPECT AND CONFIDANCE IN HON.MILES SAMPA AS A CREDIBLE RELABLE FINANCIAL EXPART. YOU CAN NOT…WHAT SO EVER TRUST THESE HUGE SUMS OF MONEY PEOPLE LIKE HAKAINDE HICHILEMA BECAUSE WHEN HAKAINDE WAS MANDATED TO PREVITIZE OUR COMPANIES, HAKAINDE WAS ONLY INTERESTED ON HIS POCKETS. HE SIPHONED ALL THE MONEY TO HIMSELF AND LEFT OUR PEOPLE TO DIE, YOU CAN IMAGIN THE ANGUISH AND THE PAIN OUR PEOPLE ARE GOING THROUGH WHILE HAKAINDE IS BRAGGING THAT HE IS THE RICHEST IN AFRICA. HAKAINDE IS A SHAMELESS THIEF IN WHITE COLAR.