Musokotwane To Present Budget Next Friday

Finance Minister Situmbeko Musokotwane has announced he will present the government’s first budget to the National Assembly next Friday, 29th October. 

The finance minister set a date for the announcement during a consultative meeting with stakeholders on Wednesday. He said the government’s principle aims in the budget were to reduce poverty; create jobs and establish a conducive environment for investment in Zambia. 

The meeting was attended by stakeholders from across Zambian industry, including the Chamber of Mines, the Zambia Association of Manufacturers and the Truckers Association of Zambia, as well as the NGO Caritas. 

The inaugural budget will arrive a little over two months since President Hakainde Hichilema’s United Party for National Development was swept into government in August’s landslide election victory. A budget had initially been promised for the end of September but was pushed back to the end of this month with no explanation.

Recently, President Hichilema has voiced his frustration at still having to work from the budget of the previous Patriotic Front government. He indicated that the new 2022 budget would decentralise funding at a community level and employ traditional leaders to help implement development projects. 

Friday’s budget could prove a pivotal moment for the new administration as Hichilema sets about laying down his plans for economic reform. During a visit by the IMF last month, the fund’s mission chief for Zambia, Allison Holland, said she would need to see “urgent steps” by the government in order to restore financial sustainability and be in with a chance of a potential bailout.