By Sean Tembo – PeP President
1. Targeted GDP growth rate at 3.5% is too low and not ambitious enough especially given the fact that we are coming from an era of economic contraction.
2. a target of 3 months import cover for GFR is too low considering the fact that we are currently at 5 months import cover.
3. the target of increasing domestic revenue to 21% of GDP is ambiguous because domestic revenue is a wide term. The minister should have specified targets for tax-revenue and non-tax revenue.
4. a target fiscal deficit of 6.7% of GDP is an admission of lack of fiscal discipline. A fiscal deficit should never be planned. It should arise due to unforeseen circumstances.
5. Budget is inconsistent. Current domestic debt is K189 billion, only K27.4 billion has been allocated for liquidating domestic debt of which additional domestic debt amounting to K24.5 billion will be acquired during the fiscal year (K189bn-K27.4bn+24.5bn = K186.1bn ) and yet the target for domestic debt is indicated as 5.2% of GDP (5.2% x K466.3 billion = K24.3 billion). The targeted domestic debt (K24.3 billion) and the projected domestic debt based on the figures provided (K186.1 billion) are two totally different figures. In other words, the budget is incoherent.
Additionally, it is a contradictory budget i.e it says Govt will spend K27.4 billion to pay off domestic debt but will also acquire new domestic debt amounting to K24.5 billion. Only the net amount of K2.9 billion should have been reflected on the expenditure as the total amount of domestic debt paid off. Otherwise the budget is wrongfully inflated, which is a misrepresentation. The true size of the 2022 National Budget when you remove duplicated figures is K148.5 billion and NOT the K173 billion presented by the Minister.
6. Allocation of K3.1 billion in the budget towards liquidation of domestic arrears that stand at K46.9 billion is too small as it will take at least 15 years to pay all Government creditors. Is the UPND administration telling Zambians who supplied food to schools to wait 15 years to be paid?
7. Amount of K350 million allocated to empowerment funds for SMEs too small to have an impact on economic growth.
8. About K8.5 billion allocated towards handouts compared to K350 million allocated to economic empowerment means that the dependency syndrome will only grow bigger among our people, at the expense of self-sustainability.
9. The budget will be 29% funded by borrowing which is not sustainable considering that we are heavily indebted already.
10. The increase in the PAYE exempt threshold to K4,500 is appreciated but the upper band rate of 37.5% for amounts above K6,900 is still too harsh to employees.
Overall, the 2022 national budget is not very different from the national budgets which the PF administration prepared in the past 10 years.
You cannot dismiss everything critical thinkers bring up, people must think and analyze what ever politicians bring about , you don’t just start clapping as if you don’t have brains.
Look at the budget and see the elephant in our house Zambia , very shortly they where telling us that free education is not possible and employing large numbers was not possible reduction of fuel prices were not possible.
Now tell us where is the money to fit in this budget with yapping borrowed money by PF and now by UPND is it workable?
Just ask yourself before you point a finger at an innocent man trying to make you think.
Ba Tembo, everything is bad.its too much of you now.
Sean Tembo should realise that these are only estimates of Govt Expenditures and Revenue for 2022/23. These Estimates are based on assumptions made on the Performance of the Economy. The Budget outurn will depend on the Govt’s ability to raise the Revenue and the Capacity to implement Projects or Programmes at Central and Local Govt levels. There is a massive shift of allocation of Money from Central Govt to Provinces. This calls for strengthening of Administrative Capacity to implement CDF funded Projects and Programmes at Constiuency levels. We hope that the Mobilization of Revenue domestically and Internationally will materialise. The Budget has been structured and what remains is to revamp Revenue Collection and the implementation of Govt Programmes. Well done the New Dawn Govt.