Zambia Media Critique

Zambia’s economy was ranked among the ten fastest growing economies in the world and among the first four in Sub Saharan Africa in very recent times. Zambia’s economic growth has now plunged to its lowest point in over a decade now staggering around 3% from a previous average growth rate of 6.9%. Zambia’s international reserves, have substantially declined from US$3.9 billion in July 2015 to US$2.3 billion at present. The much-needed foreign exchange is flowing out of the country. Zambia is importing far more than it is exporting. Government blames the loss of foreign exchange on existing commitments, particularly those relating to subsidies on fuel that have an external component. The government has since moved swiftly to increase the fuel pump price by a staggering 38% leaving market players in shock and civil society warming that the move will adversely hurt the poor. Zambia’s new Minister of Finance Felix Mutati recently attempted to outline an economic recovery plan, which

  ZAMBIANS are amazing people. They can take anything from anyone. We are lost sheep. We have lost the love for one another. We are jealous of each other, we fight one another. Even in families today we no longer celebrate each other’s successes with sincere hearts, we have broken Christian families.   We do not treat our women and girls with the respect and love they deserve. Zambians literally worship foreigners and any white person. Zambia is giving away huge tracks of land to foreigners, they have taken over our cities, now they are taking over our villages all in the name of foreign investment and the promise of a better life through job creation. We have been on this path for over two decades and we seem not to pick any lessons. Our people are been displaced and losing their livelihoods and we don’t care. We do not have a land policy; our land laws favour private capital and the narrow interest of the rich and powerful. We have built a corrupt culture and even our tradi