• This is a good sign and a strong sentiment.
• High profile personalities will continue to come to Zambia.
• This is because of the country’s prospects for cooperation and economic transformation are once again looking bright and progressive.
Minister of Finance and National Planning says IMF Managing Director’s announced visit to Zambia comes at a time when the country’s international profile is on a rising trajectory.
Dr. Situmbeko Musokotwane said this is because of the good economic transformation reforms that the country has embarked on and the responsiveness of those policies through social sector interventions to some of the needs of the citizenry.
Dr. Musokotwane cited the increase in CDF allocation to facilitate greater grass-root led development, recruitment of numerous teachers and health workers to improve service delivery, clearance of historical pensions dues, and, general awareness across the public sector that transparent and accountable governance is now becoming the mainstay in the handling of public resources, as some of the positive fruits of the country’s transformation agenda.
“The IMF Managing Director is very busy so unless a country is doing the right thing, she will not waste time visiting, this is a good sign and a strong sentiment. High profile personalities will continue to come to Zambia because the country’s prospects for cooperation and economic transformation are once again looking bright and progressive,” Dr. Musokotwane said.
He also welcomed Ms. Georgieva’s announcement that a new global sovereign debt roundtable of creditor and some borrower countries will meet for the first time on the side-lines of the G-20 Finance Minister’s Meeting in India.
Dr. Musokotwane further affirmed Zambia’s appreciation for the clarification that the new roundtable would not substitute the Common Framework for debt treatment, but compliment it.
IMF estimates indicate that a substantial number of low-income countries, Zambia included, are in debt distress.
Former IMF Managing Director’s RODRIGO DE RATO, and DOMINIQUE STRAUSS-KHAN, visited Zambia in March 2006 and March 2011, respectively.
Meanwhile, Dr. Musokotwane has arrived in Davos, Switzerland, for the 2023 World Economic Forum (WEF), in the company of Commerce Trade and Industry Minister Chipoka Mulenga, Bank of Zambia Governor Dr. Denny Kalyalya, and Zambia’s Ambassador to Switzerland and Permanent Representative to the United Nations Office in Geneva, Eunice Luambia.
According to Ministry of Finance, Dr. Musokotwane and his delegation will attend and participate in both scheduled WEF events and bilateral engagements with several development and cooperating partners.
“Among the bilateral engagements is one with the Egyptian Minister of Planning and Economic Development. The parties will examine Zambian exports to Egypt, probe opportunities for further cooperation, and exchanging insights on debt management and Zambia’s IMF Supported Programme – The Enhanced Credit Facility 2022-2025.”
“The Zambia delegation will also meet ALVARO LARIO, President of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), who not only wishes to appreciate progress on Zambia’s reform agenda but also get acquainted with the country’s efforts tailored at attracting foreign direct investment, domestic climate change mitigation/adaptation, and investment in sustainable agriculture development.”
The Ministry said another high-level bilateral meeting will be with MOHAMMED AL-JADAAN, Minister of Finance of Saudi Arabia, with whom opportunities for bilateral cooperation, development finance, and financing support for social projects, and support to farm blocks will be deliberated.”
It added that Zambia’s growing mining industry, evolving international market dynamics, and options for delivering on the Global Fertilizer Challenge, will be some of the other areas of interest for the delegation to the WEF.
“A key event will be the Financial Service Strategy Session for Africa. This roundtable event will convene industry leaders and policy-makers to explore how the African continent can meet challenges.”
