By SILUMESI MALUMO
GOVERNMENT should double efforts in securing deferment of repayment of Eurobonds, former Finance Minister Ng’andu Magande has said.
Mr Magande said Government’s decision to seek deferment of Eurobonds payment was the best way forward considering the economic challenges the country was facing.
He said in an interview that when a country was facing challenges it needed to approach debtors so that they could offer relief.
“When you are owing me and you don’t have the money what can you do, you need to approach me so that we agree on payments.
“So what the government is doing is the best way to do, and this will be good for the country which is not doing well economically,” Mr Magande said.
Mr Magande said that it was important that Government was firm so that the country could be saved from defaulting.
“I think Government has been talking to the bondholders and this is a good move which they have done. This is the only way a country can do when it is not doing well economically,” he said.
Meanwhile, Mr Magande has challenged Government to disclose how much has been raised from the Covid-19 bond which was recently introduced.
“Recently they said they have come up with a Covid-19 bond so how much has been realised from the bond? The Zambian people need to know how much Government has realised from this initiative,” Mr Magande said.
In June this year, Cabinet approved K8 billion economic stimulus package financed through a Covid-19 bond in an effort to ease the pandemic’s impact.
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