Finance Minister Alexander Chikwanda has disclosed that the 2015 budget deficit has ballooned from a projected K 8.5 billion to a staggering K 20 billion in the first six months of the year.
Mr Chikwanda has blamed the widened budget deficit to a slowdown in government revenue mainly due to reduced copper earnings and some unbudgeted for expenditure such as the January 20 presidential election.
He also revealed that Government has since revised the targeted end year GDP growth rates of at least seven percent to 5.8 percent.
Mr Chikwanda was speaking in Parliament Tuesday afternoon when he delivered a midyear budget review.
The Finance Minister stated that the 2015 budget came under pressure from the payments of K 1.3 billion road sector arrears and an additional K376 million which went to financing Maize purchasing.
He added that a further K 148 million was used for the Kafue Bulk Water Supply Project and payment for fuel arrears amounting to K3.2 billion including K 163 million used to finance the presidential election.
Mr Chikwanda said the unbudgeted for expenses have now taken the total expenditure by 13.43 billion kwacha beyond the budget.
He said the revision in the economic growth is also due to lower maize output following a fall output of maize and other cash crops.
The Finance Minister has since announced that he will seek Parliamentary approval to raise the external debt ceiling from K 35 billion to K 60 billion.
He also disclosed that he will seek further external borrowing to complete the remaining infrastructure projects.
Mr Chikwanda also announced that he has approved the establishment of a Loan Sinking Fund for purposes of paying back the two Eurobonds.
This does not sound good at all gentlemen.
We have consistently on this forum aid PF is leading us to the cliff. They have a president with no plan. The debt the country is accumulating is unsustainable, but what is worrying is that these guy don’t know. But the PF cadres will say ifintu ni Lungu!
Now that’s the Zambia I know and escaped! Never ceases to amaze me.
Political & economical wisdom is not only bestowed in pipo from North/East. It resides even in the minority like Obama in USA. When you fail admit it. Deliberately try others from the other side of the country even if democratic numbers do not favor them. Chiluba did it when he messed up the economy. He deliberately chose Levy whom he had differed with in 1994 but dubiously made him President. LPM’s results were there for everyone to see. Fiscal standards were set. Economy was on way to recovery. Reserve banks were replenished. Despite his shortcomings Rupiah Banda maintained the standards. These two used Magande & Musokotwane from the other side.
RB left million dollars in reserve bank despite embarking on speed massive countrywide infrastructure development (Urban roads, trunk roads, schools and clinics) which PF just copied. Then boom! Came Sata with limited knowledge of running the economy. Create unplanned districts, copycat Urban Roads rename them LinkZambia800, PaveZambia2000& L400. Luckily they found $750m Eurobond waiting to be ‘chewed’. It vanished in no time. Borrow another bond $1bn. It vanished. Those cosmetic roads cud hav bn done by anyone given such money. In Fact RB wud hav fully utilized it better. After all he never expected to rule had Levy not died. So he was unprepared for the Job besides like Obama he took over during the global economic meltdown.
But RB he performed well by being ‘Kamwendo munjila’ sourcing for money (Eurobonds) which PF misused. Fast forward came ‘Ifintu ni Lungu’. Where are we headed? Disaster! Sata had no excuse for messing up the economy because he had prepared himself in opposition for 10 yearsrs besides many years of governorship & ministerial positions under UNIP & MMD. I can excuse ECL for being frank on vision because he also, like RB, never planned to take over like Kabimba. Like RB he needs time to settle also & be ‘Kamwendo munjila’ to source for money. That’s when results can be seen. No short cuts. However, hunger knows no political boundaries unless those Kaponya’s are close to where spoils are shared else they’ll just be getting Chibuke beers.
This is terrible news for Zambia in the present and for future generations…there is need to widen our economic outlook; with the land Zambia has we need to do more with respect to agriculture ventures. Inviting industrial development in Zambia is a must…POLITICAL will should drive Zambia forward which we apparently have not had in the past 25 years or so…the need to have sound leadership cannot be over explained…we have had successive govts. in Zed doing nothing but stealing right to the present day…CORRUPTION IS THE BEDROCK OF FAILURE IN ZAMBIA…look at the worthy our leaders have acquired these last five years…and you still wonder why we are doing soooo poorly?!! OUR TRADE DEFICIT WILL GROW EVERY YEAR AT THIS RATE…
Dinosaurs like Chikwanda will bankrupt the country..time he packed his bags and resigned. I will never understand why Lungu kept him in this position. Once inflation starts going to double figures GRZ will find it very difficult to service the debts. Then will default. And the poor ordinary Zambia gets to suffer. Socialists like chikwanda are only good at one thing spending other peoples money.
People note the following figures: the current budget deficit at about K14bn is roughly $2bn, and Chikwanda expects at year end to K20bn (about $3bn). Unbelievable; these people found external debt around $3bn (correct me), took the ceiling to K35bn ($5bn) and now want the ceiling to go to K60bn ($8.5bn)…!! Iyee imwee. LESA TWAFWENI PLIZ…!!
I can’t believe it that this old Neanderthal still blames the budget deficit on the January by-elections. That’s the problem when you have people in position still practicing economics from dodo days. How do they even account for the millions they busy dishing out in mulobezi?
why are you surprised??,,,, ba Lungu told he has no vision for you people,,,,, the only vision he has is for us who drink like him,,,,so he will borrow so that we can drink more
Ifintu Ni Kaloba…. Oops Lungu…. More troubled waters to come before we boot these chaps out. We seriously need a revolution like what happened in 1964 and 1990 to enter another phase of Zambia’s life. Kaunda and co fought for independence which was necessary then (even though I believe it was the beginning of the mess of our economy) and the Chiluba and co brought in Multiparty to end the one party rule. From there on we have never made progress. We now need to impeach or overthrow a president and its government for them not to take the good people of zambia for granted. Only then will governments begin to perform for its people when they become scared of being booted out even before elections are due. We have had too much crap
How much did Chikwanda inherent from RB’s Govt? People like M’membe cheated Zambians into believing that “all RB did was steal” selfishly. And yet the selfish man is the only one to have left a bank balance with $3bn to show the people. It didn’t take a year for those that followed after him (and supported by M’membe) to stuff the pockets of a select few with all that money. Today we drag RB to Court for 10 used trucks as evidence of his corruption -. What a sad state of a nation and minds…
Some of you are busy bashing Lungu when you are also in
Diaspora with no life plan: multiple baby mamas/daddies, working for child support and constant arrests for DUI! You cant even travel to Zambia because you done fu.cked up on papers!
Put your own house in order first!
PF minions where are you? We need your comments
So solution is to borrow more money? Will that clear the deficit? This does not sound like sound economics to me Mudala Chikwanda nishani?
PF or not PF we all going to suffer because of these pure failure (PF). How I wish Levy had chosen Magande then these pure failures would not have existed. How can a President of Zambia have time to commission thing like the digital migration when the economy is plunging to the ground?? Please Zambians we must all rise against these unacceptable behaviors or the future of our children and grandchildren is doomed. Lungu and his fellow kaponyas must be fired. Please Zambians tell you relative, friend that 2016 the message is “Lungu must go”. We are his employers and he must respect our country’s future. He even has the guts to hide a $192 million. After he is voted out, let the law visit him harshly
LT, try to be professional in the way you report, Reuters has reported that the earlier projected deficit was 18.5 billion kwacha and you are reporting 8.5 billion kwacha. Reading the comments on this story you will see how many people could easily get a heart attack from you misinformation.
No not at all but what they need to do is to get out of there through that hole and let other people try. am sick and tired of them.
m****** mwe!!! mwaba ifikanda kuma ntwenukane fi chikwanda imwe. Naimwe fi zambian voter fusekeni!!! Mwatuchusha pafula with your ignorant voting patterns.
My fellow Zambians especially youths with mixed blood like my self who know no Tonga or Bemba tribalism let as wake up and put to a halt this PF Government for our future generations. I have been baking like a Dog for a long time now warning Zambians about our economic situation ,I even highlighted that PF is simply a batch of criminals pretending to be leaders using a political party. I have a privilege of knowing classified information and tell the truth what we are yet to see in our Zambian economy will shock you. The waste is yet to come when PF Government will have no capacity to borrow any more. The true picture of the damage will be clear. I have repeatedly said HH is the only solution not because I am Tonga no this is from my inner heart. I am convinced he is the right person .
If it is really true that only an expatriate coach can drill our National Team, what of the most onerous job of running the Affairs of the Country?
May be we should try an Expatriate President and Ministers too!
Mason, you have cracked me up! Expatriate president and ministers! Why not just lease Zambia?
When will the Zambian Government going to come out of the maize marketing political saga? Surely its high time the private sector took a leading role in the procurement of maize. The government should just buy enough for strategic reserves. Farmers should also be proactive to find their own market if its to export to Congo DR let it be so. PF also you can do better in terms of fiscal planning / managing. Your borrowing rate is just too frightening.
No, no please; do not try an expatriate president and expatriate ministers when you have not yet tried me!! Try me first; I will not let you down. 2016 vote on chipantepante.
@Brickforce Wire… I thought we were already in the phase of chipantepante! No vision, don’t know whether we are playing ku defence or pa mid, or even ku wing………
I couldn’t have said it better myself! If your budget balloons you borrow more dough to plug the gargantuan hole. That’s what you do!
Please tell me you’re being sarcastic?
I’m being sarcastic.
This is very good news for UPND and HH. It is confirmed PF is broke. Can HH please help the PF by selling your cows and donate to this broke government.
Yes HH is a and has already been and Will be a very patriotic citizen of the great republic of Zambia. He will come this time to aid mother Zambia sale the cows then give the money to treasurer. Chikwanda to do the honors.
No the good news is to work hard we should start resting on Sunday afternoon only ,above all we need to do the following:
(1) Put cameras in all GRZ offices to capture those who are not working and being paid free money
(2) Create government fields where prisoners should be working 18 hours a day
(3) Too increase more prisoners people should be leaving their properties any how so that thieves can take advantage , then we arrest them and turn them into government free labour
He talks and looks like someone who died in 1982 and rose from the dead on 1st April 2015. Can’t believe this is our finance minister.
This does no say much for good planning by the government. In its attempt to impress the people that it is a good government it went overboard with thousands of projects without considering the funding of such projects! Universities, new districts, roads, schools,bloated cabinet etc etc. Nawakwi, a former Finance Minister, warned several times that this mindless expenditure was grinding the country to financial ruin but she was dismissed as merely politicking.
Does anyone know the percentage of this deficit to our GDP?
According to an online article on miningnewszambia.com, the 2015 deficit exceeded 4.6% of Zambia’s GDP
It is about 11% of GDP
We are in trouble, some road works have literally stalled and contractors pulling out their machinery, Vubwi Chipata and Chadiza Chipata roads are good examples yet the government goes ahead to attempt other roads . Are we going to manage finishing these roads ? and are we going to survive with this Kaloba ?
The Newly named districts also requires infrastructure, where will the money to build them going to come from? Kaloba? Before we realize it, it will be too difficult to get out of it.
This is really disturbing,some one is not doing his job well.We can’t just have such a deficit within 6 months. Apa ubwafya epobuli.
In the dictator’s lounge in hell, ex-presidents were chilling out. Mobutu asked the guard to allow him to phone Zaire. He phoned his 2 wives and spoke for an hour. At the end of the call, the guard told him that the bill was $1m. He immediately wrote a cheque. Dr al Haji Idi Amin Dada, asked to phone Kampala. He spoke to this 6 wives. The call lasted 3 hrs, and cost $3m. He pulled out his American Express card and paid. Sata asked to phone Lusaka, he wanted to know if PF was continuing with his vision. He spoke for 5 hrs. At the end of the call, the guard told him that the cost was $10. Mobutu and Amin complained bitterly, asking why a 5 hour call was significantly cheaper than their much shorter calls. The guard told them that Sata made a local call. Under Lungu, Zambia is now in Hell!
Terry my friend, I will set the alarm on my phone so I can laugh tomorrow morning at 08:30 hrs.
@Terry Jones:
That’s it, I give up! You’ve just made my evening. I just wish it weren’t so true for the country that we all love….
@Terry jones, this is hilarious, you are absolutely right. I totally agree with you.
Why is this f00l still the Minister of Finance?
PF Kolopa. dom.It is Kolopaling the Economy.Jemson Lungu is busy trotting around for medical treatment while his Office chair is gathering dust.Zambia has gone to dogs.We shall see if you will eat Fintu Lungu.Only as who saw how painfull to stand in a que to buy one bottle of cooking in KK’s times really know how painfull it is.Soon Zambians will experience the worst economic hardships.
Mwansa @13. Do you blame the Finance Minister or the appointing authority for maintaining him? Where does the buck stop?
You got to hand it to LT though. They sure know how to pick the appropriate photo to go with an article. That photo of this Chikwanda dinosaur leaves no doubt in one’s mind that he just unloaded a track load of BS.
Yaya bane wapya muunzi, but finance pa bwato is not looking good. That’s about 120 percent deficit. Country men and women let’s open our eyes and ears. Let’s for once evaluate the current economic climate in Zambia. They give the Chinese run gambling and casinos instead of the council.
Zambia the real africa and pf cadres will say we are developing.wht type of mentality is that?i petty our illiterate citizens whi continue to vote by hands instead of brain analysis.
This is not the end of this story.
The size of the balloon will continue to increase as long as the sheepish natives allow it to happen.
So what does this tell us?
That PF are not capable of planning. But really, with no vision, what did you expect?
Where are those that kept saying…”ifintu ni Lungu” ?
Vote pf nafuti nafuti nafuti, infintu ni lungu
Trying to convert this figure into US$ it still looks so big considering the exchange rate. How can this figure be right within a short period of 6 months? How can he say payment for arrears on road works was not planned for when he knew that by not paying contractors on time they were accumulating arrears! What type of planning is this? When he went to announce the budget he needed to know the situation of expenditure in all key sectors especially road construction which appears to be PF’s flagship project.
The Pf supporter does not care about all this, they are mostly theives by nature
The situation is so bad,imagine even small contractors who built local courts across the country have not been paid for almost 19months which govt is praising itself for structures it has failed to pay for. The status core is negatively serious.
1.) “…. the 2015 budget deficit has ballooned from a projected K 8.5 billion to a staggering K 20 billion in the first six months of the year”.???
In SIX months?? This is clear plundering in broad daylight. Shocking, coming from a custodian of National Treasury. This is a crime. Pure and simple.
2.) And he says Copper prices has gone down?? That’s a is clearly a flat lie. Anyone who cares about Zambia can Google London Metal Exchange website -LME and see that the Copper price graph in the alleged period has NOT gone down to the same proportion, in fact in the last six months it has been rising on average i.e. the ‘mean’ on the graph has an upward trend. Chikwanda is lying unashamedly. This fraudulent, and is a serious crime.
3.) And he says money spent on un-budgeted January…
Cont’d… January 20 elections without telling us WHAT % it is from the total? Any average functioning adult knows Zambia got external funding to cover part, if not all, the January elections. This is clearly deceitful and criminal.
Guys help me out here with the maths.
Is the Hon Chikwanda saying that within the first 6 months of this year, govt expenditure has overtaken govt income by something like US$ 2,5bn.
Within 6 months ?
Am I missing something here ??
This can only be a mistake. I think LT has just made a typo error. 2,5bn dollars in just 6 months is impossible, I think it should read $250m not $2,5bn. Can the economic experts shed some light ?
Prof. Apathy,
Perhaps an article by Reuters will make you feel better…
LUSAKA (Reuters) – Zambia’s finance minister has asked parliament to almost double the country’s external borrowing limit to 60 billion kwacha ($8 billion)in 2015 to finance development projects as a financing gap has emerged.
Chikwanda said total 2015 revenues were expected to decline by 2.1 billion kwacha below the budget projections and expenditure was projected to increase by 13.3 billion kwacha above the budgeted level.
“I will be requesting the house to increase the ceiling for external borrowing from the current 35 billion kwacha to 60 billion kwacha,” finance minister Alexander Chikwanda told parliament on Tuesday.
The rest of it…
The budget deficit had increased to 20 billion kwacha from the earlier projected 18.5 billion kwacha in the 2015 budget, he said.
“Our debt is still very much within sustainable levels, even with the new intended borrowing. This may entail borrowing at commercial rates,” Chikwanda said.
The slowdown in the global economy had led to weaker commodity prices, hitting output of the cooper producer. The estimated GDP growth for 2015 had been revised down to 5.8 percent from 7 percent, he said.
($1 = 7.3750 Zambian kwachas)
Ifintu nafiLungula!
@ Mayo Mpapa, you have cracked my ribs….kikikikikikikikikiki, ati ifintu nafiLungula ni zoona!
I think nafundika inseko nkasekepo namailo, ati nileka leka people.
K20 billion deficit? Thats too much! It means you havent been cutting your coat according to your cloth. Budget properly and do projects realistically. Dont overdream. The only hope is to ask China to give you a grant since you are now looking after many of their citizens
This Chikwanda is messing up Zambia for years and nobody takes action whats wrong with you people?
Never underestimate power of 5tupid people in large numbers!!!
Willie Nsada had cash K6million, KK Airport scandal $24 million, both part of deficit. Planning is about looking back and anticipating the future. The presidential bye election should have been budgeted for just like parliamentary bye elections. The deficit may have been caused due to kick backs in the procurement process. Way forward, suspend the establishment of milling companies in the provinces, channel a few resources to key infrastructures such as hospitals.Suspend construction of new district infrastructure, suspend creation of new constituencies,Suspend bye elections,suspend MP’S gratuity,abolish DC’s offices councils can take over, reduce cabinet, recover all corruptly acquired wealth and sir, invite Kachema and Nawakwi to assist,PRIDE kils . The future of our children is in…
The mess created by these people will not be easy to correct. However, correct it we must, otherwise we shall be slaves very shortly to a foreign power. Fellow countrymen, we all need to campaign for change of leadership of this country and choose people who are going to turn the economy of this country around. We need to make hard decisions and put aside pride for our kinsmen to continue in the high seats in favor of the nation’s survival. Anything short of this soul searching will ultimately put the country beyond salvage.
@Siambwende
Look left, look right, look all around you….ALL major parties in Zambia favour this bizarre ‘win, win’ (?) approach to Mines. We only have one great industry to base our economy, but even HH, Chipimo, Nawakwi, wants to give our Mines away.
So what new Leader are you talking about? They all agree on this one approach….give the mines away for free and chicken scratch around the dry yard for worms for the citizens.
We are really in trouble.
LOANS SINK……we surely are sinking from the loans. Our one shot was making the mines pay!
And the minister of health was telling us govt is cutting back on spendin. Just the other week the governor was urging the govt not to borrow and now this. Surely banks won’t lend to a layman for cheap. Am not an economist but this is add fuel to the flame.
Zambians rejected prudence and hard work and kicked out RB’s MMD for more money growing on trees in your pockets spend spend spend Sata’s PF. I feel like saying, ‘We told you so!’ Unfortunately the man who invented this mess is at Embassy Park. Thank God he was retired because with the support he had from The Post it would have been worse.
In every country there is corruption, but the corruption that is going on in our country is so worrying. If government officials who are in charge of controlling the country’s economy continues with the way they are handling issues, soon we will be like our neighboring country Zimbabwe. We can not keep borrowing to survive when do we pay it back when there is no plan for paying back, it’s so sad with what’s going on, now soon the copper will have no value once it gets to England, what I mean by not having value is that every time we sell that copper, we will have so much debt that there will be no money for development. Right now it’s happening, every time they mention development next is going to borrow, because all the Tax money has been going in their pockets. Zambia is rich, it’s…
The leaders mind set that is poor. We have so many resources in zambia but we choose to worst it. Imagine, former Kavindele’s farm called Mukulumpe’s Estate which was one time called Nchanga Farms on Kitwe/Chingola road right at the junction when going to Mufulira, had copper from the beginning and KK knew about it but decided to keep that land and consider it for reserve, now that area is owned by Chinese and they are mining copper as I write this comment. My point is why would a country that is trying to develop hold a place like that full of copper instead on Mine it and later Kavindele owned it and now he is the one collecting loyalty from those Chinese. What Ian trying to say is the greediness that is going on with the people we put in power. When is that time going to come to do…
PF supporters pleas, we need you input ???
Do you really expect any member of PF “intelligentsia” to make any sensible comment?
When dealing with macro economic policy deficits are common. Judging by some of the comments on thi story one is bound and o conclude that the world has come to an end for Zambia. I am not a fun of the PF economic policy however I can not completely fault them for the budget crisis. The issue becomes how this deficit is managed. When we embarked on this very ambitious infrastructure development and investment for the country we all cheered and recognized that in the long run we were positioning Zambia for the the 21st century. The way the his deficit is managed will be more important than the deficit itself. As for the reserves we had before the PF, we had a choice let the money sit and gather dust or reinvest it in the economy by modernisation of infrastructure we can’t have it both…
So how do you propose they manage that huge deficit which is bound to balloon by the end of the fiscal year??
This is why the currency exchange rate keeps going up, the Kwacha will never gain power any more. I remember when I left Zambia twenty four years that was in 1991 the exchange rate was $1 to zmw 1.2 but today the dollar is at 7.3 and keeps going up, all because of situations like borrowing with no plan of paying back. And some people wants to get mad that we end up getting citizenship from other countries, every one given that chance will do the same. KK and his family will never lack anything financially, so his Chiluba, RB and Sata because all what these guys have done is plunder the resources and take everything to themselves. I have seen properties owned by these former presidents in foreign countries all from the poor people’s money. KK has a five star hotel in Italy, I stayed…
Zambiano my friend,
don’t stop now. Tell me more about that ka hotel in Italy. Maybe when I’m in that part of the world I can stop by and release a can-full of cockroaches in their kitchen and put the hotel out of business. ha ha.
Seriously though, that’s only one of the differences between our countries and many in the West. Take the US for instance, most people who run for the highest office are already rich so plundering is not a motivation for running. And even those who are not rich like Bill Clinton or Obama they will make their millions via book deals and speaking engagements, not by emptying public coffers ka.
Ifintu ni UNIP?
This Chibwi is leading the country once again on a debt path, exactly what he did with Kaunda. At independence ,the British left a lot of money. Instead of advising Kuanda on how best to develop and accumulate capital, they embarked on unplanned developments and reckless spending, exactly what he is doing today. No lessons learnt. The person to blame is Sata who had taken corruption and nepotism to a whole new level. He also, said he has approved the establishment of a Loan Sinking Fund for purposes of paying back the two Eurobonds. This is what he should have done before borrowing. Now the money has been stolen, by the way, where is he going to get the money to pay into the sinking fund? This guys needs to be jailed.
Nobody will like this post. But here it is anyway.
But it has been done in many countries including South Africa.
Govt should propose an amnesty on any funds acquired through corruption or tax evasion. This does not include things like drug trafficking etc
These funds can be brought back for re-investment into Zambia.
A 5% levy is charged and the offenders get immunity from orosecution.
As it is none of the Chiliba saga got anywhere. Nothing gets recovered. Rather than buying other countries bonds, these illicit funds stashed abroad can be invested into GRZ bonds or other direct investment. Im sure there will be enough to extinguish our entire external debt
Firstly your excellency ECL may i take this opportunity to congratulate you on abandoning the “vision” of late Sata.
This kaloba chaos was ignorantly mis-labelled as a vision of developement.
The vision was nothing but pure anarchy. The quicker you ditched it the better for you.
Your vision should be the reversal of Satas vision. This reckless borrowing and indeed this budget did not evolve during your watch. we will take you to task after seeing your own first budget later this year.
Thank you for also stopping the cadre PF machetes that were terrorising our streets. The old PF was nothing but gangs run by war-lords. At least you have restored some sense of discipline. But please sir, bring magande back….
“apathy” or “dreaming the dream”?
I know president Lungu wants to keep some of Sata’s fellow dinosaurs, but we as the people shall support him if he lets this one retire.
Viva President Nawakwi.
LT, try to be professional in the way you report, Reuters has reported that the earlier projected deficit was 18.5 billion kwacha and you are reporting 8.5 billion kwacha. Reading the comments on this story you will see how many people could easily get a heart attack from you misinformation.
Kabimba you have my vote in 2016 going by this mess we are seing
@ jimwwe
You think that “socialism” according to Kabimba is a way forward? Either you have forgotten KK “economical achievements” or you are another dreamer.
bwafya
bwafya
Instead of us getting amazed, lets organize ourselves and protest to stop parliament from approving this proposal
tuli mundoti naba PF,Lesa mutwafwe twamilomba
Iwe Nubian, why are you diverting from the discussion on Zambian economic management and choosing to be personal towards some invisible persons? Why does it pain you that some people have messed up their personal lives? If they are friends, advise them instead of condemning them here when another topic is being assessed.
By the way what is the actual national budget for 2015? Was it not about K47billion? If so isn’t the K20 billion budget deficit not almost half the national budget? Or could it be that the Minister is misquoted .. he may have mentioned a K20 million deficit. If its true, this can only be attributed to gross incompetence by the whole government including parliament. You can’t pass such a budget only to have deficit mid year even if mineral royalty taxes have been reduced. In fact the money used to fund the January 20, 2015 Presidential bye-election may have been surplus from 2014.
Unless our national budget is K47 trillion, K20 billion shortfall of a K47 billion budget is too much! Zambians’ future is too gloomy!
Masipa a keni. Ifintu ni Chakolwa. Where are 1dio.ts like Yambayamba to comment on this?
@Patriot Abroad, you are being defeatist in your thinking. The Zambian situation can be turned around. All we need to do is put our collective brains to use- and we are not short of these. We have countries doing very well without mines to depend on. Our population is less than some cities in certain countries. We have great land, weather patterns, fresh water and best of all, great people. The people who come here cannot believe that we are endowed with so much in terms of resources but are at the tail end of the wealth stick! Let us call for a national indaba almost on the likes of the Garden House Hotel one. This country is too precious to see it going to waste like that.
@Nyau, thank you my friend, I feel like I could spill the soup here, it’s so sad what’s going on in our mother zambia, all because of the people we trust to govern our country. Yes I mentioned KK and his five star Hotel in Italy, I know of some of Fredrick Chiluba’s houses in France worth millions of dollars, even Katele Kalumba has a house in Florida bought from that Zamtroop account scandal, RB the list is endless. My fellow friends we need to educate our relatives on how to go about voting, this issue of buy me a drink and I will vote for you is not helping our country. When these guys gets in the office, they take everything that meant for developing the country and puts it in there pockets. Our Economy for now will keep on going down because of the people driving it.
Why are we still keeping an incompetent old man in this position. We must refuse to borrow. We all need to tighten our belts so lets brave it. If we dont have we dont have.
PF has too much appetite for corruption and have already done enough damage to our country
WAS PF NOT WARNED OF THIS BEFORE? ITS GOOD THAT ITS FROM THE FINANCE MINISTER HIMSELF. WE WERE TOLD THAT THEY DON’T HAVE A VISION OF THEIR OWN ONLY SATA’S VISION. BRINGING BACK DORA SLEET , AND OTHERS IN PF WAS THAT SATA’S VISION? WE NEED A MINISTER OF FINANCE LIKE THE MAGANDES NOT THIS OLD FELLOW HE HAS FAILED US. YOU COMMENT ON THIS BA KATONDO BOYS. PALIPONSE NAMUTOILET BAGULISA. ZAMBIA’S ECONOMY IS MOVING LIKE A HEADLESS CHICKEN. POOR PLAN
What are the IMF/World Bank restrictions on passing out odious debt?