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IMF team arrives in Zambia to assess economy

Xinhua, November 13, 2015 Adjust font size:

An International Monetary Fund (IMF) mission is in Zambia for a scheduled review of the country's economy which is grappling with challenges brought about by falling copper prices.

The IMF team arrived on Wednesday and will hold meetings with government officials, development partners, the private sector, civil society and think-tank organizations, the Ministry of Finance announced in a statement obtained by Xinhua on Thursday.

"The coming of the IMF team to Zambia would not have been a more appropriate and opportune time than now, not only as we close the year 2015 and reflect on policies going forward, but at a time when Zambia, like most emerging markets is facing economic challenges," Fredson Yamba, the Secretary to the Treasury said in the statement.

The official said the visit is meant to review the economic situation since the last meeting, adding that the two parties had agreed to meet towards the end of the year.

He however said the government is not discussing a program with the Washington-based lender.

The IMF team is led by Tsidi Tsikita and comprises officials who specialize in real, fiscal monetary and external economic factors.

Among the core issues that will form the discussions include macroeconomic performance in 2015 and the medium-term outlook, fiscal developments in 2015 and outlook, debt and debt sustainability issues, monetary policy developments and external sector developments.

The discussions will also be on future relations between the government and the IMF and the outcome of the deliberations will culminate in the definition of practical measures to the challenges facing the country.

The Zambian currency has depreciated significantly this year due to a drop in copper prices on international market as copper accounts for about 70 percent of the country's foreign exchange earnings.

The depreciating currency has resulted in the inflation hitting a double digit of 14.3 percent, resulting in spiraling of prices of commodities.

The country's central bank recently raised its benchmark lending rate to a record 15.5 percent to curb inflation.

Analysts have called on the government to take austerity measures to deal with the current turmoil such as cutting down on public expenditure. Endit