Government Sends Debt Restructuring Proposal to Official Creditors

A spokesperson for the government’s advisors has announced on Monday that the country has sent a proposal regarding its debt restructuring to its official creditors, having announced its plans to do so on Friday.

The spokesperson told Reuters, “We can confirm the proposal has been sent”.

In November 2020, Zambia defaulted on $18 billion in foreign-currency debt, becoming the first major country to do so during the Covid pandemic.

Zambia’s external debt is split roughly three ways: one third is owed to Chinese lenders, another to private creditors, and the rest to other governments and multilateral lenders, such the World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF).

It has been a long and arduous process for the government and the country’s creditors to come to an agreement on its repayment terms, hampered by factors such as the geo-political concerns between China and the US.

Photo: Reuters