Finance Minister Alexander Chikwanda has signed a Statutory Instrument (SI) that brings into force the Bank of Zambia (Monitoring of Balance of Payments) Regulations 2013, whose objective is to monitor Balance of Payments in a transparent manner.
This is according to a statement released in Lusaka yesterday by the ministry’s public relations officer Chileshe Kandeta.
Mr Kandeta said in view of the signing of the SI, “the ministry of Finance takes this opportunity to affirm that in no way do the regulations stipulated in the SI 32 of 2013 constitute any intentions,implied, disguised, concealed or otherwise by any other definition, to introduce exchange controls in Zambia.”
He said the ministry appealed to the public to ensure that instead of denigrating the regulations, the measures should be seen as a significant step towards creating high transparency standards in managing the Zambian financial system.
The regulations apply to financial service providers licensed under the Banking and Financial Services Act, importers of goods or services exceeding US$10 000 or the equivalent in other foreign currency, exporters of goods or services exceeding $10 000 or equivalent in other foreign current and financial service providers designated under the National Payment Syatems Act, 2007.
Among others, and in relation to outflows, the BoZ would monitor the value of any imported goods, the value of any imported services including management services, loans granted to non-residents, trade credits from non-residents and investments made in form of equity or investments made in form of debt securities outside Zambia by persons resident in Zambia.
Mr Kandeta said in relation to inflows, the BoZ would monitor, among others, the value of goods or services exported out of Zambia, profits or dividends received in respect of investments abroad, borrowings from non-residents and trade credits to non-residents, investments in the form of equity from abroad, investments in the form of debt securities from abroad and receipts of both principal and interest on loans for to non-residents.
In relation to international transactions, the BoZ would monitor, among others, the value of imported or exported manufacturing services or goods to or from non-residents, the net cost effect of telecommunications services, the value of international transport, courier and postal services and international money transfers into and out of Zambia.
“The people of Zambia have been complaining about lack of reliable and accurate information on the resources that are generated in the country or which come from foreign sources, to develop Zambia. This is an opportunity for affected players to ensure that accurate records on foreign exchange transactions are maintained and this is the way to go for a country endowed with resources but whose capacity to unroll development to higher echelons has been hampered by poor transparency and accountability practices,” me Kandeta said.
Are we trying to fight money laundering or what?? Just monitoring alone wont bring any development
Concentrate on the mines and leave everyone else alone
They should start with monitoring how monies from the EURO BOND has been spent
I don,t know why you Zambians are so negative about your country. Go to South Africa , they do the same thing. Go to Europe , USA etc they do the same. Why cant Zambia also monitor? Please well done Mr Chikwanda.
Peace and Prosperity to Mother Zambia.
And you would be surprised that most people complaining here are resident in Europe or The States were these controls are even harder yet they got no problem with that.
We are our own enemies, last time they were complaining about sim card registrations but they have their sim cards registered were they live. UNBELIEVABLE!!!
They simply do not understand anything and hence just being negative with whatever the govt is doing! Ubukopo
sata is a nephew to chikwanda, sampa the deputy minister to chikwanda is a nephew to sata there a grand son to chikwanda. simple reasoning tells you there is a smelling rat in this arrangement.corruption hinders development-nepotism
Well done PF.The world is not static I dynamic.We shul kip on tryng the systems of developng our country than jst insultng each other.Put politics aside & focus on developmental systems.Pliz,PF,don’t listen to tuntemba parties,they hav no vision only bakng like dogs.
hope it inhence in the development of our nation
hope it bring inhencement in the development of our nation.put politics aside