Africa-Press – Zambia. The continuous free falling depreciation of the Kwacha against major convertibles is quickly turning into a serious business nightmare. It is increasingly becoming expensive to run a local business.
This trend is negatively affecting the business environment at both local small and medium levels in an import based economy, compounded by the fact that Zambia’s economy is consumer based.
Local small and medium businesses which employ a large chunk of workers (90%+) outside the formal sector are now experiencing high operational costs owing to the upward swing of the Kwacha.
If not arrested it is only a matter of time local small and medium businesses start to close unleashing more unemployed people to the already existing 8 million job seekers number on the market. We call on President Hakainde Hichilema and his administration to:
1. Provide tax, levies and statutory incentives to small and medium businesses so as to reduce the cost of doing business and scale up production.
2. Cap the price of fuel and electricity (plus or minus) every six months to return business predictability in estimating operational costs and other business overhead costs.
3. Government should take over both gold and sugilite mining through ZNS to rake in dollars in the treasury to help the Kwacha appreciate against the western currencies.
4. A deliberate economic plan to directly invest in Zambians through Government supported new venture fund startups targeted at indigenous Zambians in agriculture, mining, manufacturing, technology and creative arts. Zambia needs more new local business players with new money.
We further request the Republican President to convene a National Economic Summit where different stakeholders can present papers to the Government to inform a new economic order for the Country from 2023 to 2033.
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