Zambia plans to spend additional $991 million this year, mostly on maize buying

By Reuters News

LUSAKA, Oct 22 (Reuters) - Zambia's finance minister on Thursday asked parliament to approve 19.9 billion kwacha ($991.16 million) of extra spending this year, most of which would go on maize purchases by the state agency that manages the country's food reserves.

  • Presenting the supplementary budget, Finance Minister Situmbeko Musokotwane said it was needed after the Food Reserve Agency (FRA) bought more maize than planned

  • "This higher spending on crop purchases is mainly due to Government's decision to take advantage of this year's bumper harvest to stock up ... (before) the anticipated lean period in 2027 due to the adverse effects of El Nino," the minister said

  • The International Monetary Fund noted earlier this month when it announced a staff-level agreement on a new lending programme that government expenditures had increased markedly due to substantially higher-than-budgeted spending by the FRA

  • Zambia is yet to release its 2027 budget. The finance ministry has indicated next year's budget could see a 7% increase in government spending while revenue may rise 6%


($1 = 20.0774 Zambian kwacha)

Capital.com is an execution-only brokerage platform and the content provided on the Capital.com website is intended for informational purposes only and should not be regarded as an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy the products or securities to which it applies. No representation or warranty is given as to the accuracy or completeness of the information provided.
The information provided does not constitute investment advice nor take into account the individual financial circumstances or objectives of any investor. Any information that may be provided relating to past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results or performance.
To the extent permitted by law, in no event shall Capital.com (or any affiliate or employee) have any liability for any loss arising from the use of the information provided. Any person acting on the information does so entirely at their own risk.
 

Cryptocurrency-related content is intended solely as news and market commentary. Crypto Derivatives are not available to Retail clients registered with Capital Com (UK) Ltd.