Tue, 05 Sep 2017 10:28:24 +0000
By Rogers Kalero
GOVERNMENT will not make decisions to appease people for a short term period, but it will make critical decisions for future and long term benefits, says Finance Minister Felix Mutati.
And Mr Mutati said President Edgar Lungu has indicated that he was ready to make bold economic decisions to set the stage for economic recovery and national development, and that making decisions to appease people for a short time will not benefit the country and its people in any way.
Speaking in Kitwe at the weekend, Mr Mutati said stakeholders in various sectors of the economy should support Government policies of achieving economic recovery by paying tax and other relevant ways.
“This Government will not make decisions to appease people for a short term period, but it will make critical decisions for future and long term benefits. We have President Edgar Lungu who is ready to make bold decisions to take the economy to greater heights,” Mr Mutati said.
He said the stability of the Zambian economy as evidenced by the reduction of mealie-meal prices, stable currency and reduction of fuel was an indication of better things to come.
Mr Mutati said Government would always strive to ensure that the benefits of economic stability reach the people at the grass root level so that they understand and appreciate the work of government.
“Things are falling in place. Mealie-meal which was previously being sold at K100.00 is now between K45.00 and K50.00 per 25-kilogrammes bag. The Zambian Kwacha which was K15.00 to the US Dollar, is now trading between K8.00 and K9.00,” he said.
And Kitwe and District Chamber of Commerce and Industry president Allan Nyirenda said he had observed that, according to statistics given, the economy was improving and had also observed with interest, the stability of the Kwacha against major currencies.
Mr Nyirenda said the chamber was closely monitoring what was happening in the financial sector and had appreciated that the Bank of Zambia recently announced a reduction in policy rate to 11 percent from 12.5 per cent.
“Despite this reduction in the policy rates, the financial sector moves at a very slow pace in adjusting their lending rates to levels of comfort,” Mr Nyirenda said.
