. Dr Scott

By JUDITH NAMUTOWE –
VICE-PRESIDENT Guy Scott has advised the private sector against ignoring the impact that high interest rates have on Zambia’s economy.
Dr Scott said this during a 2015 national Budget discussion forum organised by PricewaterhouseCoopers Limited at Lusaka’s Intercontinental, in Lusaka yesterday.
He said there was need for the private sector to worry about the impact high interest rates have on the economy.
Zambia, which has high unemployment levels, should pay particular attention to the bearing the high interest rates have on the country’s economy.
Dr Scott noted that countries with large economies like the United States of America (USA) worry about the interest rates and employment rates as they have a negative bearing on the economy, but that in Zambia people tended to worry about inflation and exchange rates.
At the same occasion Union Gold Zambia Limited chairperson Mark O’Donnell expressed concern over the proposed mineral royalties in the 2015 national budget, saying they were too high.
Mr O’Donnell said there was need for Government to dialogue with mining firms regarding the proposed mineral royalties.
He said Zambia risked losing investments in the mining sector if the matter was not addressed.
PricewaterhouseCoopers director Jyoti Mistry said the increased mineral royalties were among the highest in the world.
Ms Mistry expressed hope that the changes in the sector would not deter investments in the mining industry, as investors looked for continuity and certainty in the tax system.
She urged the Government to reassure industry in this regard.