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Zambia would have been better off than World Bank - Magande

Zambia would have been better off than World Bank - Magande
By Joan Chirwa
Saturday July 14, 2007 [04:00]

ZAMBIA should have been better off than the World Bank if the money borrowed from the international lending institution was used properly, finance and national planning minister Ngandu Magande has said. And outgoing World Bank country manager Dr Ohene Nyanin has said his organisation intends to stay longer in Zambia while assisting in the fight against poverty.

During an office warming party for the World Bank which will now be housed at Pyramid Plaza in Lusaka, Magande said Zambia could have been one of the developed countries if it properly utilised resources borrowed from the Bretton Wood institution which has had its presence in the country for long.

“We have been borrowing money from the World Bank for many years and the country should have been better off than the bank by now,” Magande said. “We have now agreed with the World Bank that the money coming to Zambia should go into the development of the productive sectors.”

Magande said borrowed resources from institutions such as the World Bank should be used to build the country’s wealth.

“We have now sailed across the river and what we need to do is firmly put our feet on the ground,” Magande said. “I see a lot of opportunities for Zambia and the Zambians.

There is a foreign company which is interested to come and invest in the production of agriculture lime in Mazabuka. This company will also be making fertiliser.” Magande also said Zambia’s poor reading culture had contributed to the country’s underdevelopment.

“We need to know and learn what others have done to achieve economic growth. This is why it is important for people to read as much as they can at all times,” Magande said.

He also said he would ensure Zambia maintains the fiscal discipline it had achieved over the past few years.

“For as long as I remain the Minister of Finance for the coming years, I will ensure we still maintain the fiscal discipline in this country,” said Magande.

And Dr Nyanin said the African continent would one day become needless as a result of the sufficient support being given to several countries in the region for various development projects.

“We intend to continue helping countries like Zambia, although this will not be for too long because one day, Zambia and Africa as a whole will one day not have a need. Until then, the World Bank will do everything it can to help these countries come out of poverty,” Dr Nyanin said. “What we see now is a Zambia that has reached the Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative completion point, we see a Zambia that has a reduced annual inflation rate.”

The World Bank and the African Development Bank (AfDB), which also has its offices at the Pyramid Plaza, will soon launch a joint information center for use by members of the public.

Labels: MAGANDE, World Bank

posted by MrK @ 4:54 AM