(Also funny that the IMF is concerned about the regressivity of fuel and electricity subsidies, yet they dont seem to worry about the regressivity of the VAT!). Zambia finally gets $1.3 billion IMF Bailout By Chief Editor - September 1, 2022 25 3,380 views Zambia has won International Monetary Fund board approval for a $1.3 billion support. Chris Olaoluwa gnmdd Sep 9, 2022 A woman sweeps outside her house in Lusaka, Zambia, Aug. 14, 2021 (AP photo by Tsvangirayi Mukwazhi). And. Removal of free basic education Before I sign off, I would like to address my colleagues in Zambian civil society who went along for the ride with the IMF, appeared in many photo ops with IMF staff and largely gave credence to the opaque process that gave birth to such an anti-poor deal. Zambia has agreed the terms of a $1.4bn bailout with the IMF, a crucial step towards ending a debt crisis in the copper-rich but near-bankrupt nation. Zambias debt burden had long attracted international attention, and its loan agreement with the IMF comes at a time when many other countries across Africa and the rest of the Global South are faced with what some have described as a debt pandemic. In 2020, Zambia defaulted on the repayment of a $42.5 million eurobond repayment, becoming the first African country to default on its debt during the coronavirus pandemic. Focus on developing the local economy. All rights reserved. IMF and indebted Zambia move toward a $1.4B rescue package Zambia's IMF Bailout Comes With Painful Conditions Pf was pursuing the same route, except they failed. On the basis of my knowledge of the Zambian economy in recent times, and how a country that was weaned off the dreaded IMF, went back cap in hand for assistance, I decided to write a summarized educational piece on the expected impact of the IMF program from both the technical angle and from an ordinary Zambians point of view. There should be no dispute that Zambias social programs will be supported in the current IMF deal. The IMF now wants us to do the reverse and do so in quite a drastic way. Imagination is the organ that allows us to thrive on the cusp between danger and opportunity; it is an adaptation to the reality of time. What is your alternative solution? Zambia is in debt distress and needs a deep and comprehensive debt treatment to place public debt on a sustainable path.. The homegrown plan was the PFs and it was rejected. Standard Digital includes access to a wealth of global news, analysis and expert opinion. Nearly half of the countrys debt payments are to western private lenders. Spend it wisely, and sparingly it does disappear quickly! you have always been against the IMF bailout without you having alternative solutions. The government should give the gentleman a hearing. We can of course give credit to President HH, who is currently in charge to have brought back credibility and normalcy to Zambia. I will be one of the first casualties of this IMF devilish loan deali will publish the bill for my 3 phase underground power with their new revised ZESCO tarrifs as per makaka IMF.gullible Zambians do you seriously think the Western World wants Africa to prosper.come on now.theyre goal is to make Africans suffer.what is US$1. Here are some facts about the lead up to the last-gasp agreement: -May 2019: IMF approves a $6 billion, 39-month bailout package for Pakistan under the EFF struck with the government of then Prime . This IMF has Neva bn accepted by Mugabe coz it comes wt tight conditions that negatively . Govts should not be afraid of loans. The hugely successful Farmer Input Support Programme (FISP) will be reformed beginning farming season 2023/2024. The fact that theyre hiding the condition of IMF deal is enough to confirm that Zambia has been auctioned..unless youre a Lumbani madoda praise singer. From 2018 to 2021, I taught economics at the Graduate School of Business at the University of Cape Town where I was the Co-Director of the MBA Programme. They will buy all at economic prices and charge goods and srevices at commercially exhorbitant rates to Zambians. If you think Zambians are hurting nowwait until these measures take effect. UPND had no choice but to swallow this terrible pill. How do you employ 40,000 Civil servants within a given budget year? I am currently the Director of Research at the Institute on Race, Power and Political Economy at the New School. The authorities program, supported by the ECF-arrangement, will advance the authorities home-grown reform plan to restore debt sustainability, create fiscal space for much-needed social spending, and strengthen economic governance.. This is good. This is exactly what most Zambian economists anticipated. Because of this, governments often exempts many products from VAT to protect the poor. The first IMF stabilisation package focused mainly on planning and managing demand in the economy. The writer is a Chartered Accountant and Author. There is not one correct path in Econ. Nearly one-third of the debt -- $5.78 billion - is owed to China. A WPR subscription is like no other resource its like having a personal curator and expert analyst of global affairs news. The majority of stakeholders agree that the IMF is highly effective during a financial crisis. The nation's dollar bonds . IMF agrees $1.4bn Zambia bailout - African Business cookies Other social protection programs are also being expanded: including programs to mitigate food security risks, keep girls in school, and help provide meals for students in schools. He is a semi-retired international MSMEs Consultant and an independent financial commentator. The long-awaited agreement under the Extended Credit Facility, subject to . In some countries, therefore, the IMF has been said to be a blessing in disguise by their citizens in that it has helped them move from dictatorship to a democratic dispensation with good governance, rule of law, control of corruption, freedom of the press, strong and independent governance institutions. Zambia had been seeking endorsement from the Washington-based lender for over three years as the government tries to finalize negotiations to revamp external liabilities that grew to $17.3 billion by the end of last year. Zambia agrees with IMF on $1.4B bailout package | CGTN Africa The answer is no. Zambia secures $1.3 billion in IMF bailout | CGTN Africa Update 1 September 2022: For the latest news about Zambia's IMF loan click here. The second reason is that the IMF of the 80s, 90s and early 2000 is quite different from the current one. Razor above, celebrating kwacha gain and yet the same people are in my DMs asking for money. and other data for a number of reasons, such as keeping FT Sites reliable and secure, At the time, the government of President Edgar Lungu asked the IMF for a bailout citing COVID-19 impact and a critical drought a year before. If you can stimulate the economy and get mining going, this $17bn is easy to dismantle. Change the plan you will roll onto at any time during your trial by visiting the Settings & Account section. The IMF has built its global reputation around these areas: providing sound policy advice and technical assistance to member countries, helping countries overcome financial crises but it has failed to meet its goal of promoting jobs. IMF Bailout: A Strangulation of Zambia's Future. UPND came into government saddled with debt trap. May 11, 2021 37 2,786 views Finance Minister with IMF Delegates The Zambian government and the International Monetary Fund have again failed to agree on terms of an economic reform programme. Posterity will be the judge, and I am wagering that the judgement will be one of disappointment. Well done HH & UPND govt. The veiled secrecy and the toxic anger with which the UPND are reacting to any questions about the IMF deal doesnt give us the confidence that the IMF has come in peace this time around. university This is how IMF and UPND swindled Zambians.they knew if they published these conditions before the loan is approved 99% of Zambians should have said NO..IMF is very deceptive and predatory ..kikikikikiki not so fast blah blah blah blah 1.3 billion dollars kansi ni malabishi.we can raise 1.3 billion very easy using our own resources. Ghana IMF loan: Will $3bn solve the economic crisis? - BBC This is what this analyst missed to say. The alternative was zero to very little growth of the economy.. No democratic GRZ can survive 2 terms with the state the economy was found in..there was going to be absolutely no employment created. I am sure what I have written above should already cast doubt on the reformed IMF thesis. Mozambique is stil under endless economic direstarits brought about by IMF. 4. We have an economy which is foreign owned, dependent on one primary export which is copper, import dependent, without any manufacturing base, an undiversified economic portfolio and 85% informal economy! 22/297 IMF Executive Board Approves New Extended Credit Facility (ECF) Arrangement for Zambia August 31, 2022 The IMF Board approves SDR 978.2 million (about US$1.3 billion) 38-month ECF arrangement for Zambia to help restore macroeconomic stability and foster higher, more resilient, and more inclusive growth. The sad thing here is that this will drive small scale farmers off the land. I am one of the commentators who has written several articles on Zambias pursuit of the IMF program for eight years, including writing a book on Zambias ten year road to economic ruin under the Patriotic Front (PF), and the attendant result of the country turning into a battleground for the stealth economic war between China and the West, before most experts could discern it. I am currently the Director of Research at the Institute on Race, Power and Political Economy at the New School. Pakistan and IMF reach standby agreement on $3bn bailout. Now that the IMF LOAN you so vigorously wanted is here, no more excuses for that economic turnaround you so preached about, right? Electricity tariffs will have to increase (via subsidy removal) and the IMF wants the Zambian government to publish a plan for doing this by December 2022. Below, and typed up pretty quickly because of work pressures, I summarise some of the most concerning aspects of the deal. 4. Nice one though. 46. Leaders (Politicians) sacrifice a lttle bit of their comfort. 8. Has there ever been a country that has prospered by ceding its economy to a small clique of foreign merchants of Asian origin? The International Monetary Fund agreed to provide $3 billion to Pakistan a long-awaited relief to bail out the impoverished country's ailing economy. A substantial strengthening of fiscal controls is needed to support the fiscal adjustment, as well as address governance and corruption vulnerabilities. YOU CAN DOWNLOAD THE FULL CONDITIONS BELOW. Read more. It consisted of the 1973/74 so-called stand-by agreement. How have I contradicted myself with what yamba has pasted ?? Fri, 19 May 2017 12:55:46 +0000. They have no more easy money which they splashed around every week end. According to Zambian government debt data, the country accumulated $31.74 billion by the end of 2021, of which $17.27 billion was external debt. The bailout, announced on Thursday, follows months of negotiations between Lusaka and Zambias main creditors, which include France, the UK and China. The program was approved unanimously. You have TB and expect panado to cure you? It is all about international confidence which nawakwi , kaizer and nakachinda failed to build. Ghana and Zambia race to secure IMF bailouts - DW - 10/21/2022 - dw.com Relentless fight against corruption Far from it. The people of Zambia have suffered from huge cuts to public services in recent years, with spending falling by 21% between 2019 and 2021. Last December, the copper-rich nation Zambia clinched a tentative agreement with IMF . China agrees landmark debt relief deal for Zambia As Zambians, we should not be necessarily celebrating clinching the deal from an institution that specializes in bailing out countries who find themselves in desperate financial stress, because it is the third time that we have approached them. It will also be important to bolster the framework for monitoring fiscal risks, particularly those related to large state-owned enterprises. Who doesnt know who his father is, Of course its not a good position to be in but we needed it to restructure our debt. Thanks to PFs reckless borrowing and theft, we were already in poverty. Nearly one-third of the debt -- $5.78 billion - is. Have a confidential tip for our reporters?