EU Restores Budget Support to Zambia

The European Union (EU) has restored budget support to Zambia, with a first disbursement of K600 million.

The restoration of the EU budget support comes more than ten years after the Union withdrew support to Zambia in 2012.

EU Ambassador to Zambia Karolina Stasiakb said: “A decade ago, the EU had to withdraw its budget support from Zambia. However, in 2021, with the appointment of the new cabinet, we have witnessed a renewed commitment to ambitious reforms towards strength and governance and guiding Zambia back into economic recovery and development.”

“And I’m very excited to be here today to celebrate the resumption of our budget support,” continued the Ambassador. 

Ms Stasiak said the budget support focuses on health, pharmaceuticals, and public procurement; this should help the government achieve its aim of increasing the availability of national essential drugs from 35% to 70% of the population by 2026. 

Speaking during the ceremony, Dr Situmbeko Musokotwane, Finance and National Planning Minister, said, “After satisfying yourself that the conditions that led to the withdrawal do not exist anymore, we are very grateful for this gesture, and I want to assure you that we will do our best to maintain that … public money is public money.”