By Isaac Zulu
Private Sector Development Association chairperson Yusuf Dodia Zambia is in a weaker position because the IMF and other international organisations are telling the government not to disturb the mines so that they continue exploiting the county’s mineral resources.
And Dodia said as opposed to leaving Nitrogen Chemicals of Zambia (NCZ) as a white elephant, the government must revamp it so that the country is not dependent on outside sources, as the case is now following Russia’s decision to pull away from the Ukraine grain deal following the failure by western countries to fulfill Russia’s demands.
In an interview, Dodia said the Kwacha is ever depreciating following sporadic appreciations on account that sources that can ensure sufficient forex in the country are not being fully utilised, like the mining sector for instance.
And Dodia has said that the temporal appreciation of the Kwacha against major convertible currencies should not be attributed to the debt restructuring agreement, saying the local currency is now on depreciation trend.
“Debt negotiations is not an event, but a process, that started about two or three years ago. President Hakainde Hichilema has just actualised the debt negotiations by going to Europe and meeting President (Emmanuel) Macron and other members of the G20 that culminated in my restructuring of $6.3 billion. That is a great milestone, but it should not be the end of the road. We still have about $10 billion extern debt. So government should continue with these debt negotiations by engaging with China, India and other countries,” Dodia said. “And this debt restructuring agreement should not be mixed with the appreciation of the Kwacha because the local currency is now on a depreciation trend. This constant depreciation of the Kwacha against major convertible currencies can be controlled by government comings up with aggressive intervention measures that would enhance economic growth. There are so many people in Zambia that can be consulted on these economic issues. The challenge we have is that government is on a weaker position and is being subordinate to the western economies, the IMF and other international organisations that are telling government not disturb mines, but allow them to continue operating and, in the process, exploiting mineral resources.”
And Dodia observed that the decision by Russia to pull out the grain deal will adversely impact on the Zambian manufacturers economy.
He explained that the war between Russia and Ukraine will have some disruptions on the supplies of grain and fertiliser to Zambia.
“The war between Russia and Ukraine, that has been going on for more than a year now, will have some disruptions on suppliers of grain and fertiliser to Zambia and derail economic development of the country. We are an importing country the Russia grain deal pull out will impact negatively on our economic development,” he said.
Dodia said that, in order to avert the impending situation, government should enhance its capacity to produce fertilizer and corn.
He said that the UPND administration should find available and cost effective sources of fertilizer and corn in order to address the situation.
“We need to start looking for home grown solutions. We have the Nitrogen Chemicals of Zambia, which was constructed in the 1970s, and if revamped can operate at full capacity can produce the fertiliser that we require as a country. That is one of the solutions. But unfortunately it has been left as a white elephant,” said Dodia. “Other than that, Zambia has to look for available and cost effective sources of fertilizer and corn from Asia and South America.”
