Top 5 Zambian news stories this week

This is for the week - 1st - 6th February 2021

1. Zambia Is Done for Now With Taking Over Mining Companies: Zambia isn’t looking to take over more mining companies, nor is the government planning to nationalize the industry, according to Finance Minister Bwalya Ng’andu.The government has acquired Glencore Plc’s and Vedanta Ltd.’s local operations in the past two years. Remarks by President Edgar Lungu in December that Africa’s second-biggest copper producer wanted to take “significant stakes” in unspecified mines led to fears of a fresh wave of nationalization. [Bloomberg]

 

2. Zambia asks for debt restructuring under G20 suspension deal: Zambia announced on Friday that it had officially applied for restructuring under the G20 debt suspension initiative for the world’s poorest countries.Zambia, the first African country to default on its debt during the pandemic, saw its external debt bulge to nearly $12 billion in 2020. The copper-rich country missed two interest payments over the past three months. Those interest payments totaled $98.6 million.“Zambia is committed to transparency and equal treatment of all creditors in the restructuring process,” Finance Minister Bwalya Ng’andu said in a statement. [CGTN]

3. MOROCCO 3 – 1 ZAMBIA: PLAYER RATINGS (CHILONGOSHI POOR, SHAMENDA, SAKALA GOOD):The Zambia national soccer team will be on the next plane back home after being dumped out of the on-going Total 2020 CHAN Tournament following a 3 – 1 loss to defending Champions Morocco. The Chipolopolo were a man down midway through the first half and 3 – 0 down at half time. They fought back to score a face saver late in the game. [ZambianFootball]

 

 4. Zimbabwe, Zambia Hydropower Plant Upgrade Delayed by Two Years: Upgrades to Kariba Dam, the main source of electricity for Zambia and Zimbabwe, have been set back by at least two years because of technical challenges and supply disruptions caused by the coronavirus pandemic, the Zambezi River Authority said. A meeting of finance ministers from the two countries last week cited delays in contracting works, unforeseen technical challenges and supply constraints for the delay, the authority, which regulates water usage, said. [bloobbergquint]

5. Zambia electoral body launches electronic voter register inspection ahead of polls: The exercise will run from February 7 until May 7 this year ahead of the August 12 general elections. Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) Chief Electoral Officer Patrick Nshindano said the electronic-based inspections will involve the use of a website platform and mobile phone platforms.“In our quest to be innovative and provide convenience for the registered voters, we have devised electronic means of verification of voter details on the provisional register especially now that the country has not been spared by the COVID-19 pandemic,” he told reporters during a press briefing. [CGTN]