.YAMBA

By JAMES KUNDA –

BRITAIN has given Zambia K65.6 million as budget support towards programmes aimed at reducing poverty in the 2014 National Budget.
The provision of the funds through the Department for International Development (DFID) makes Britain the first Poverty Reduction Budget Support (PRBS) cooperating partner to release funds committed to supporting the 2014 Budget.
In a letter to Secretary to the Treasury Fredson Yamba, DFID resident head Emma Donnelly said the release of the money was based on Zambia’s impressive progress in several areas of cooperation.
Ms Donnelly said Britain was impressed by the measures taken by the Government in ensuring fiscal discipline and improving public
financial management reforms, although the pace had been slower than DFID expected.
This is contained in a statement released by Ministry of Finance public relations officer Chileshe Kandeta yesterday.
Ms Donnelly affirmed Britain’s commitment to continue supporting development efforts by focusing more on complimenting the Government’s endeavours which aimed at better management of poverty reduction programmes.
“There has been no evidence of breach of the four underlying principles of poverty reduction Budget support,” Ms Donnelly said.
Mr Yamba thanked the British people for their timely assistance and reiterated the Government’s commitment to utilise the funds for poverty reduction activities prudently.
“Notwithstanding the source of revenue, the best way to honour the late President Michael Chilufya Sata for his principled approach and fiscal discipline, infrastructure development and poverty reduction is to ensure that there are no slippages in resource utilisation,” Mr Yamba said.
Meanwhile, Mr Yamba has said the two Sovereign Bonds that Zambia issued on the international capital market have continued to post positive performance.
“According to market assessments, Zambia’s US$1 billion bond currently trading at 113 per cent, has the best price amongst the African Sovereigns, while the price for the $750 million bond, at 95.38 per cent, is an improvement from the below 90 per cent levels recorded in the first and second quarters of 2014,” Mr Yamba said.
He said the $750 million bond yields strengthened and it was now trading at a rate of 6.23 per cent, up from the eight per cent levels recorded in April 2014.
“In addition, the $1 billion bond is trading at 6.62 per cent, a remarkable performance compared to the yield of 8.625 per cent at issuance in April 2014,” he said.
Mr Yamba said the Treasury would continue to issue briefs to ensure that credible information was shared with the public, both locally and in the international socio-economic arena.
The $750 million bond matures in 2022 while the $1 billion bond matures in 2024.