Zambia’s decision on future IMF programme pending —Musokotwane

Finance and National Planning Minister, Situmbeko Musokotwane, says the Zambian government has not yet made a final decision on the future of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme, which is scheduled to conclude this October.

Speaking at the Bloomberg Africa Business Media Innovators conference in Livingstone on Monday, Musokotwane clarified that tough economic decisions, such as the removal of fuel subsidies, were home-grown initiatives and not imposed by the IMF.

He highlighted the positive impact the IMF-supported programme has had on Zambia over the past three years, particularly in stabilising the economy and supporting debt restructuring.

“Regarding the future of the IMF programme that ends in October, no final decision has been made yet. It will be communicated in good time,” he said.

Musokotwane stated: “The IMF programme has been extremely useful for us. It was one of the anchor pieces for the country’s restructuring, which is now nearly concluded.”

Musokotwane stressed that, regardless of whether the IMF partnership continued or not, the Government remained committed to prudent economic management and growth.

He assured citizens that major policy shifts, including the removal of fuel subsidies, were made in the national interest.

“We don’t need the IMF to tell us that we can only spend what we have. The decision to remove fuel subsidies was ours because it was unsustainable. It made no sense to subsidise fuel while millions of children were out of school due to a lack of resources,” Musokotwane said.

He added that government’s focus remained on promoting production, investing in education and health, and ensuring sustainable economic management.

WARNING! All rights reserved. This material, and other digital content on this website, may not be reproduced, published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or in part without prior express permission from ZAMBIA MONITOR.