• It will go a long way in ensuring that government continues with its agenda to deliver quality services.
• Government has a responsibility to create a conducive environment for business.
• The supplementary budget will bolster efforts that government has been making to continue with the country’s transformation agenda.
An Economist says the K22 billion supplementary budget approved by parliament yesterday will go a long way in ensuring that government continues with its agenda to deliver quality services for the Zambian people and create an environment that is conducive for business.
Mathews Muyembe told Money FM News in an interview that government has a responsibility to create a conducive environment for business, while ensuring that it’s spending stimulates economic development and allows the private sector to flourish.
Mr. Muyembe noted that if government spends money on contracts and other public services, it stimulates aggregate demand in the private sector so that businesses get to move, thereby increasing liquidity in the economy.
He adds that the supplementary budget will bolster the efforts that government has been making to continue with the country’s transformation agenda, and ensure that there is stimulated economic activity from private sector players.
“The supplementary budget that was taken to Parliament and was approved by Parliament is good news not only for government but also the private sector. As much as government has a responsibility to ensure that we have a conducive environment for business, government spending also stimulates economic development.”
“If government spends money on contracts and other public services, the private sector is also able to flourish because when government is spending, it stimulates aggregate demand in the private sector so that businesses get to move, there is liquidity in the economy,” Mr. Muyembe stated.
Mr. Muyembe observed that there has been some improvement in delivery of services in agriculture, infrastructure, and health sectors as government has been prudent in ensuring that there is value for money.
“These services that government has been rolling out, priority areas which at the end of the day have the potential to give multiplier effect in terms of revenue generation, as well as expansion activities or income generation for household and businesses, government has been prudent to ensure that it spends money where the need is. We can see the efforts that government has been making to ensure that all sectors in terms of policy alignment, in terms of tax regime, in terms of the conduciveness of the environment that government is participating in, itself to ensure that there is proper quality service delivery for the Zambians.”
“So even this supplementary budget will go into bolstering the efforts that government has been making to ensure that we continue with the transformation agenda, and to quickly ensure that there is stimulated aggregate demand in the private sector, there is economic activity from the private sector players,” he added.
On Wednesday, Parliament approved a supplementary budget of K22 billion to boost the 2022 national Budget of K173billion, and this was after Finance and National Planning, Minister Dr. Situmbeko Musokotwane moved a motion that the House resolve into a committee of supply to consider supplementary estimates Number one of 2022.
According to Dr. Musokotwane, K9.7 billion will be allocated towards arrear dismantling, with K3.3 billion allocated to suppliers and contractors, while
K2.2 billion is for emergency road works, K1.8 billion towards the debt swap and K1 billion for fuel arrears.
Dr Musokotwane said K4.7billion is for the Farmer Input Support Programme (FISP), K612 million will go towards paying off Indeni Petroleum Refinery retrenched workers.
