LUSAKA (Reuters) – An International Monetary Fund team is expected in Zambia next week as part of consultations on the country’s debt levels, Treasury secretary general Fredson Yamba said on Monday.
(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});In February the IMF rejected Zambia’s borrowing plans, saying they risked making it harder for the southern African country to sustain its debt load.
Copper-producing Zambia has since come up with a new debt plan it hopes will clear the way for the IMF to agree a $1.3 billion loan.
Zambia’s debt was sitting at $9.3 billion, roughly a third of its gross domestic product, at the end of March.
(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});“We want to look at our debt figures. They submitted a number of questions, which we have responded to. We are just verifying how the numbers are seated,” Yamba told Reuters.
Yamba said the consultations would take place from July 23-28 and address Zambia’s debt, fiscal deficit and related issues though not its request for a new IMF aid program.
