Economic Happenings in Zambia

By Michelo Maunga I like to follow current affairs. This can be through watching news, reading the papers or following certain social media pages. Comes naturally, as in the house I grew up in, we followed news. Anyway, away from my proclivities, what is current now is happenings with America. This is a country that for many of us, was greatly admired. Many of us desired, and some may still long, to make our abode, in America. For those of our people who managed to migrate there, they immediately assumed a sense of superiority, in our minds. Growing up, America influenced, practically every aspect of our lives. What we watched; what we listened to; what we wore, even what we ate, seemingly, could be tied to that land. Yet before our eyes, the eyes that the American long ridiculed, that Dynasty seems to be crumbling. At the heart of America’s downfall, is that of its brainchild, democracy. Why do I say so? America is not such a bad place. Some of the world’s brightest minds, are Ameri...

By Michelo Maunga I was fortunate enough to spend most of my annual leave in Walvis Bay, Namibia, a coastal city in the South Western part of the country. It was my first time in Namibia; a country I have had an interest in for some time. The prospect of going there, interacting with the people and learning more about their culture was, thus, one I found very exciting. I have a keen fondness for visiting African states and while I have done so a few times, this is the first time I am writing about it. Now, Namibia, beautiful country, almost as beautiful as my home. Friendly people. Very diverse, not just in the populace, but nearly everything about the place. All this heterogeneity, however, tends to co-exist harmoniously. I was shocked, even the weather. In one country, you have 3 climates, the desert (hot), the coastal region (windy and cold) and the tropics ( in the East, closer to Zambia).  I will begin with the people. Namibia has an interesting history. The natives (indig...

By Michelo Maunga I am firm believer in the immense potential of our economy. In my readings, I have come to realize there are not many countries as endowed as Zambia. We have nearly every resource; land, minerals, water, tourist attractions and people. We are at the centre of Southern Africa, whilst also being the intersection between SADC and COMESA. Right now, we are at the cusp of a truly monumental point in our history. Underneath our soils, we have the oil of the future. What oil was to America, the gulf nations and the entire world economy, is what our metals (copper, nickel, manganese, lithium and cobalt) are for the energy of the future, renewable, clean energy. And so, I wrote this book to describe this great potential. It is only when we recognize what we have, that we can truly transform our economy. The book begins by describing our most recent economic history, particularly the decade between 2010 and 2020. Economics, itself, as a field, is current in nature. Therefor...

By Michelo Maunga At the invitation of the Japanese Prime Minister, Shigeru Ishiba, President of the Republic of Zambia, Mr. Hakainde Hichilema, embarked on a 5-day state visit to the East Asian nation from the 2 nd to 7 th of February. The Head of State was accompanied by Ministers in the Ministry of Commerce, Trade and Industry, Infrastructure and Urban Development and Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation; in a delegation which included Director General of the Zambia Development Agency, Dr. Albert Halwampa and President of the Zambia Association of Manufacturers, Mr. Ashu Sagar. In a stay that included high level engagements, the penultimate day would see President Hichilema grace a gathering of Japanese and Zambian firms, organized jointly by ZDA and the Japanese External Trade Organization (JETRO). President Hichilema was slated to deliver a key note address at The Business Forum, followed by remarks from Dr. Samuel Maimbo, Zambia’s candidate for the AFDB Presidency,...

By Michelo Maunga The Zambian economy.is heavily reliant on imports, with sectors such as manufacturing importing a large share of inputs annually, as revealed through various surveys conducted by the Zambia Association of Manufacturers.  By consequence, the Zambian Kwacha tends to perform poorly against other major currencies such as the United States Dollar and the British Pound. Various measures have been undertaken to reverse the trend over time. For instance, the Government has listed several commodities produced locally for a surcharge and has been driving the development of linkages between different sectors of the economy through local content and the Proudly Zambian Campaign. Simply defined, local content relates to; the consumption of domestically produced goods and services, employment of locals, infrastructure investments in host communities and supplier development, among others. It represents the spread of economic benefits within a community, district, country or...

By Michelo Maunga The current deficit in electricity production is effecting substantial harm on households, industry and the Zambian economy as a whole. For Manufacturing, the implications have been dire, it being a sector that is highly energy intensive. Load rationing is not a new phenomenon in Zambia. However, it has become increasingly frequent in recent years. This is attributable to the continuing effects of climate variability, with reduced rainfall patterns inevitably resulting in lower water levels in our reservoirs for hydroelectric power generation. These effects are only compounded by the composition of the country’s energy mix which relies on hydro-power for 83% of installed capacity, with majority of these sources located in the part of the country most severely affected by dry spells, Southern Province. Let us begin by reviewing the policy framework governing the domestic electricity sector as encompassed by the National Energy Policy (NEP) of 2019. This Policy was ...