By Jane Chanda
Economist Naylor Kopakopa says Zambia’s over-reliance on the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for economic transformation can have long-term negative consequences due to stringent conditions that limit fiscal and policy flexibility.
But economist Kelvin Chisanga has supported the IMF’s projection that Zambia’s economy will grow by 6.2 percent in 2025, driven by government-led economic reforms, with stronger efforts needed to empower local businesses.
In an interview over the weekend, Kopakopa said the current US $1.7 billion IMF Extended Credit Facility set to conclude in October 2025, raised concern about the tangible impact of those facilities on the country’s economy and whether they contributed meaningfully toward achieving Zambia’s development goals.
“Continued dependence on IMF support could limit the country’s fiscal and policy flexibility,” Kopakopa said.
He urged the government to critically assess the benefits of multiple grants and loans from the World Bank, other multilateral lending institutions, and donor nations.
The economist said he was concerned that President Hakainde Hichilema’s optimism about the IMF partnership may not yield sustainable growth if the attached conditionalities were unfavorable.
“I think it’s crucial for Zambia to weigh the benefits against the costs of IMF support,” Kopakopa said.
And Chisanga said enabling Zambians to secure contracts, especially those tied to national development, would enhance local participation in the economy and help drive the projected growth.
“The country currently lacks a strong capital base to support broader enterprise development, hence the need to build local financial capacity,” he said. “Upscaling Zambian road contracts to 35 percent would allow full-scale benefit, which will help contribute to the growth of the economy.”
Chisanga believed that the ongoing government-led economic reforms were key drivers of the projected growth, and complementing those eforms with stronger efforts to empower local businesses was crucial.
