• Impact of the drought will reduce working hours in the business sector.
• This may contract the GDP by around 20 percent.
• The delayed debt restructuring process also raises uncertainties towards achieving the 4.8% GDP growth.

A Financial Analyst says Zambia’s projected 4.8% Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth for 2024 may not be attained due to various economic fundamentals that have come into play such as drought.
Speaking in an interview with Money FM News, Trevor Hambayi observed that a decline in crop production due to drought that the country has been experiencing, will reduce the potential input of agriculture towards the country’s GDP growth.

Mr. Hambayi also noted that there will be a reduction in working hours for the business sector which will negatively affect GDP performance by around 20%.

“There a lot of economic fundamentals coming to play that will make it a challenge for the country to achieve the 4.8 percent GPD growth.”

“The impact of the drought will reduce working hours in the business sector and this may contract the GDP by around 20 percent,” Mr. Hambayi noted.
He added that the delayed debt restructuring process also raises uncertainties towards achieving the 4.8% GDP growth as there are areas of concern around liquidity on the market.
“The drought will also reduce agricultural production, which will reduce the potential input of agriculture towards the GDP.”

“There are areas of concern around liquidity on the market, we do not know whether the country will get to a position where there will be liquidity sufficient enough to drive economic recovery in the private sector,” he added.
Government targets to attain real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) Growth rate of at least 4.8 %, mostly on the back of the anticipated recovery in mining and agriculture as well as improvement in the macroeconomic environment.