The assessment follows a visit to Lusaka by an IMF staff team led by Edward Gemayel from February 24 to March 4.<\/p>\n
In a statement at the end of the mission, Gemayel said Zambia\u2019s successful restructuring of public external debt, stronger international reserves, improved investor confidence and declining inflation reflect \u201csustained reform efforts\u201d under the now\u2011concluded Extended Credit Facility programme. Inflation has recently fallen within the Bank of Zambia\u2019s target band, while economic growth has picked up.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The IMF maintains a positive outlook for Zambia, though it warns that risks have increased amid domestic challenges and rising global uncertainty. Growth for 2025 has been revised down to 4.5% due to weaker mining output, slower wholesale trade and ongoing energy supply constraints affecting non\u2011mining sectors. Growth of 5.5% is projected for 2026, reflecting a normalisation in agricultural production after last year\u2019s exceptional harvest.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Global oil price increases and geopolitical tensions could place renewed pressure on inflation and the kwacha. The IMF says domestic fuel price adjustments may be required if international oil prices remain high in order to prevent revenue losses from fuel taxes.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The mission raised concerns about emerging fiscal pressures, noting that the 2026 budget\u2019s planned primary surplus could be weakened by rising wage costs, agricultural support and election\u2011related spending. Without corrective measures, the IMF estimates the surplus could fall by one percentage point of gross domestic product, compared with the 3.8% target in the previous programme review. It also urged close management of Food Reserve Agency operations to avoid renewed quasi\u2011fiscal risks.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The IMF emphasised the need for greater transparency in integrating all spending pressures into the fiscal framework, while continuing structural reforms to strengthen revenue administration and broaden the tax base. Zambian authorities expressed interest in a successor arrangement, with preliminary discussions expected as early as April, though substantive engagement will resume after national elections later this year.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The IMF team met President Hakainde Hichilema, Finance Minister Situmbeko Musokotwane, Bank of Zambia Governor Denny Kalyalya and other senior officials during the visit.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
–IMF\/ChannelAfrica–<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":27929,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"news-type":[44],"class_list":["post-27928","news","type-news","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","news-type-finance","entry"],"acf":{"short_description":"An International Monetary Fund IMF) mission says Zambia has made substantial progress in restoring macroeconomic stability following the completion of its IMF\u2011supported reform programme, but warns that rising fiscal pressures and weaker\u2011than\u2011expected growth could threaten recent gains. ","published_date":"","news_description":"An International Monetary Fund IMF) mission says Zambia has made substantial progress in restoring macroeconomic stability following the completion of its IMF\u2011supported reform programme, but warns that rising fiscal pressures and weaker\u2011than\u2011expected growth could threaten recent gains. ","form_embed":"","author":"","image_caption":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/27928","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/news"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/27928\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":27941,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/27928\/revisions\/27941"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/27929"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=27928"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"news-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-type?post=27928"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}