Zambia Austerity Measures to ‘Seriously Affect’ 2020 Budget

(Bloomberg) -- Zambia will implement austerity measures in next year’s budget to ensure the country pays off debt and safeguards food, water and energy supplies, President Edgar Lungu said.

Africa’s second-biggest copper producer is battling the worst drought in almost 40 years in parts of the country that has led to power cuts and the lowest corn crop in a decade. In addition, the IMF has warned that the government’s rapidly rising debt is unsustainable.

“Next year’s budget will be seriously affected as we expect to meet our debt obligations, pay outstanding local debts and meet the pressing needs of our country such as food security, water reticulation and indeed energy generation,” Lungu told lawmakers Friday in the capital, Lusaka.

“My government will be managing for results by doing more with less until such time as we have adequate resources for all the people of Zambia,” he said.

Finance Minister Bwalya Ng’andu will deliver the 2020 budget on Sept. 27.

To contact the reporters on this story: Matthew Hill in Maputo at mhill58@bloomberg.net;Taonga Clifford Mitimingi in Lusaka at tmitimingi@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Gordon Bell at gbell16@bloomberg.net, Hilton Shone

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