Africa-Press – Zambia. Economic fundamentals such as inflation and the exchange rate have stabilized.
Stability in these variables facilitates economic planning.
Foreign reserves have grown significantly meaning that importers will always bring into the country whatever they want and debt repayments are assured.
This is important to keep the country linked to the international economy.
The external debt has largely been restructured so Zambia can access international debt which is essential to supplement local resources.
You attack and demonize the above economic achievements at the risk of being labeled uninformed.
Beyond these economic fundamentals, there’s a wide range of public policies, programs and projects that the UPND government has achieved or embarked upon which I recommend any one who wants to go up against HH in the forthcoming elections to engage.
The student meal allowances were restored; CDF increased significantly; increase in social cash transfer; strong performance of the mining sector; recent acceleration in solar power projects to increase power supply; annual recruitment in the public service; etc.
In engaging any of the above issues, my take would be to avoid wholesale condemnation as this will naturally elicit the now-familiar response from the UPND: what are your policy alternatives..
This is the challenge the
must rise to.
On this score, you shall know whether opponents are ready to govern as an alternative government.
Without giving out my own ideas freely (I earn a living by providing consultancy in the public policy area), I can only give a hint.
Under the UNDP activities in Zambia is a program focusing on innovation.
Unique ideas aimed at resolving public policy problems are encouraged and funded.
Countries have developed on innovation – creativity, inventions, new ideas and new approaches.
This is what must be brought to the discussion table during the forthcoming elections.
But this is not just for the opposition. It’s for the UPND government as well lest they think they have arrived.
What politicians in Zambia don’t do which their counterparts in the west do is to hire policy experts to inform their public discourse.
Our politicians are satisfied with their pedestrian arguments leading to dry and repetitive ideas and election promises.
Already, the public discourse is filled with familiar stories which tells the rest of us that the country, under whichever politicians will be elected, will largely remain the same.
Zambians must understand that they are yet to see development informed by innovative ideas.
What they have been treated to so far by any government, the current one included, is almost nothing.
Let there be a difference in the public discourse this time around.
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