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Companies

The Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC) has disclosed that of all the 39 cases it received concerning ZANACO, the Bank was not found wanting under the Competition and Consumer Protection Act (CCPA) No.24 of 2010, and that all the complaints brought before the Commission were fully resolved.

CCPC Public Relations Officer Rainford Mutabi said the commission investigated and concluded a cumulative 117 cases relating to the provision of banking and financial services in 2021. Out of the 117 cases, 39 cases from the public were concerning challenges to do with services offered by the Zambia National Commercial Bank (ZANACO).

In response to the Zambian Business Times – ZBT, Mutabi said the 39 ZANACO complaints that were handled by the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission were all investigated. He explained that the complaints bordered on failure to reverse failed transactions within time, delays in refunding complainants for failed ATM transactions, queries on increased loan tenure/instalments, unauthorized deductions on customers’ accounts and delays in processing digital payments.

He further urged the public to report to the Commission all complaints relating to unsolicited deductions, queries in loan deduction periods and amounts, unfair clauses in contracts, delays in transfer/reversal of funds, over or double deductions for transfers/ withdrawals, display of disclaimers when accessing financial services among others were the financial institutions fail to resolve them in a satisfactory manner.

The Public Relations Officer however said, it is important to note that in a situation where a complaint brought to the Commission is outside its mandate, the Commission refers the complaint to the relevant authority/investigative wing.

Mutabi mentioned that the Commission handles cases where customers suffer continued deductions after fully settling loans, reversal of failed ATM transactions where funds have been debited, cases to do with extended loan tenures/increased repayment instalments and wrongful listing on the Credit Reference Bureau.

Other cases that the commission handles include failure to have access to funds in one’s account, unauthorized deduction on customer accounts and delays in processing digital payments.

He said the banking sector has continued to advance technologically and this has seen a potential in vulnerable customers being exploited due to lack of adequate knowledge therefore it is imperative that consumers with plausible suspicion of unfair treatment in their interaction with banking financial service providers come through to the Commission or any relevant Regulator (authority) and  seek assistance.

Mutabi mentioned that it is also important to note that the Commission, through Memoranda of Understanding with other regulators is also able to undertake joint investigations with other regulators. In this sector, the Commission works in consultation with the Bank of Zambia to achieve comprehensive complaint resolution and customer satisfaction.

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The Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC)

Markets

The Bank of Zambia – BOZ, which is the central bank has admitted that the impending electricity price hikes to cost reflective tariffs will pose an upside risk  to inflation. Electricity tariff are expected to go up with the cost of connection fees already adjusted upwards.

Speaking during the Monetary Policy Committee announcement attended by the Zambian Business Times – ZBT, BOZ Governor Dr. Denny Kalyalya explained that there are upside risks to the inflation outlook, which include increase in crude oil prices, initial effects of implementing the transition to cost reflective electricity tariffs.

He further stated that other factors that may lead to an inflation increase are the possible lower crop production due to adverse weather conditions, lingering supply chain bottlenecks induced by the Covid-19 pandemic and tightening of monetary policies in major economies.

The Governor noted that the transition to cost reflective electricity tariffs may also have short-term effects on inflation although over the medium to long-term, this is expected to have positive economic benefits through for example increased investment, supply, and access to electricity as well as exports.

The Bank of Zambia (BOZ) has maintained the Monetary Policy Rate at 9% citing the sharp deceleration in inflation and its projected continued downward trend towards the 6-8 percent target range over the forecast period (Q1 2022-Q4 2023) as one of the key factors in arriving at the decision.

Dr. Kalyalya said inflation is projected to continue trending downwards towards the 6-8 percent target range over the forecast period, averaging 13.2 percent in 2022 and 7.3 percent in 2023.

The BOZ Governor who is also the head of the monetary policy committee said underlying the projection are mainly the catalytic benefits of securing an IMF programme such as access to budget support, reduction of the external debt burden through restructuring and unlocking investments as well as the positive impact of higer copper prices mainly through the exchange rate.

Dr. Kalyalya further said that the committee has welcomed government’s medium-term budget plan (white paper) adding that the importance of successful execution of this plan is deemed critical to the achievement of macroeconomic stability, including low inflation and a stable financial system.

He added that in January 2022, inflation fell further to 15.1 percent from 16.4 percent in December 2021 largely because of improved supply of fruits and vegetables.

Annual overall inflation declined sharply to an average of 18.9 percent in the fourth quarter of 2021 from 23.7 percent in the third quarter. This was largely driven by the appreciation of the kwacha against the US dollar and the dissipation of base effects, particularly for meat and poultry products. As a result, both food and non-food inflation declined to 24.5 percent and 12.5 percent from 30.8 percent and 15.6 percent respectively.

Decisions on the policy rate will continue to be guided by inflation forecasts, outcomes and identified risks including those associated with financial stability and the Covid-19 pandemic, BOZ reiterated.

 

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The Bank of Zambia - BOZ, which

Lifestyle

Governance Expert George Chimembe says the recommendation by the European Union Election Observation Mission (EU EOM) to remove from the law undue campaign privileges for the President and Vice President to ensure equal campaign conditions for all candidates should be supported.

Chimembe, who is also former Foundation for Democratic Process (FODEP) Executive Director said the recommendation is progressive, as it will ensure that there is a level playing field for everyone contesting at presidential level.

Speaking in an interview with the Zambian Business Times-ZBT, Chimembe said the campaign privileges given to the President and Vice President disadvantage the other competitors while the political parties that the President and Vice President belong to are advantaged.

“We have also seen some abuse of public resources or even those privileges, they are used to disadvantage the competitors, we saw the former Vice President going around giving lifts to the running mate of a former president, which was against the provisions of the electoral code of conduct”, he said.

He said another abrogation of the provisions of the electoral code of conduct was to extend the privileges accorded to the President and the Vice President to candidates that were contesting in those particular general elections.

Chimembe noted that during his stay at FODEP, the organisation proposed that when campaigns begin, the president should no longer continue being the president and the speaker should instead take over the executive functions so that the president can be looked at like any other presidential candidate adding that some countries like Malaysia have done that.

However, Chimembe has expressed displeasure at the European Union Election Observation Mission’s recommendation to remove the G12 academic qualification requirement from aspirants for elective political positions.

Chimembe said the issues that are debated in parliament border on policy and law making among others therefore the need to have people who are not ill qualified as they would not be able to provide quality contributions and their debate would not be detailed, analytical and informed.

He said there is need for people with some level of education to represent the people, which will enable them to analyse issues brought in parliament with some educational framework adding that people with no requisite qualifications will not be able to understand some of the issues that will be brought into the house thereby disadvantage the representation of the people.

“Our colleagues who are bringing these proposals, what is their standard there, we need to ask our colleagues from Europe what their standard is, do they allow anybody just because he is a citizen, I don’t think so. At the level of parliamentary candidate, I think grade 12 is very fair, otherwise we could have even asked for a diploma as a minimum and a degree would be ideal. At councilor level you tend to have problems getting people that are qualified, we saw that a lot of political parties cried foul but at the end of the day they looked for those people and those people were able to compete so let’s not downgrade.”, he said.

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Governance Expert George Chimembe says the recommendation

Lifestyle

By staff analyst

Government has increased salaries for local authorities’ employees across the board by 12%. This is on the back of the country experiencing a double digit inflation rate, with the move expected to help workers maintain their purchasing power.

Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development Permanent Secretary-Technical Services Wisdom Bwalya said the increment is meant to ensure that Local Authorities, among other things, maintain a positive work environment that boosts employee morale, retention and productivity.

Bwalya reiterated that Government is committed to improving the welfare of employees as demonstrated by the award of the said 12 % Salary increment amidst hard times. “I now challenge the Local Authorities’ employees to reciprocate this gesture by working hard to improve service delivery to the people,” Mr Bwalya said.

The PS said the 2022 improved salaries/wages and conditions of service will be financed using the 2022 Local Government Equalisation Fund and locally generated revenues. He has since directed principal officers of Local Authorities to develop strategies to improve revenue collection to provide satisfactory services to communities and raise resources to pay salaries/wages on time.  

Local Authorities, and Zambia United Local Authorities Workers Union (ZULAWU) and Fire Services Union of Zambia (FIRESUZ) concluded negotiations for the 2022 improved Salaries/Wages and Conditions of service for Local Authorities employees. The negotiations, for the employees in Division II, III and IV, were held from 27th January to 5th February, 2022 in Lusaka.

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By staff analyst Government has increased salaries

Lifestyle

The confirmed 100% failure of the entire complement of grade nine 9 pupils at Mumena Secondary school of Kalumbila District of North Western Province has exposed the inequalities that rural learners face compared to their urban counterparts.

The saying that education is a great equalizer is more easier said than done. Mumena Secondary school is a rural school in Kalumbila District of North Western Province, located about 30 km away from Solwezi town. Imagine schools that are 100 or even 200 kilometers from the provincial capitals.

The Examinations Council of Zambia – ECZ by this revelation should now be compelled to be making the entire country school examinations results statistics available than continue with the current masking were only the high level national and provincial averages and statistics of exam results are publicly available.

ECZ as a matter of national interest and equity should publish the examination results statistics that shows how rural schools have been performing relative to their urban schools, so that government policy can be informed as regards to resource allocation. How many rural schools recorded over 90%, 80% or even 70% failure rate?

To further investigate if such results were there is 100% failure rate are feasible, the Zambian Business Times – ZBT exclusively interviewed Author of Exams made Easy, Rozious Siatwambo who diclosed that it is difficult to understand that all the 38 candidates at the school who had sat for the 2021 grade 9 exams failed.

Dr. Siatwambo, who is also CEO of Great North road Academy, noted that where the matters of exams is concerned, it would be unfair to put a blame on the learners or the examiners adding that other pupils who had sat for the same exam in different schools performed better than the said school.

He added that it is a concerned school and it really need to look into its teachings. Meanwhile, the National Action for Quality Education in Zambia (NAQEZ) has described the 100% failure at mumena secondary school as an academic taboo.

NAQEZ Executive Director Aaron Chansa said the ugly reality at Mumena School, has raised fundamental academic, social and cultural questions about this school. Chansa further noted the need for honest scanning of the academic background of the said candidates, the absenteeism rate by both teachers and learners, the school environment, teacher motivation at the school, the attitude of the learners and the community towards school as well as the relationship between teachers and the school administration.

He has also urged the Ministry of education to further investigate the levels of parental support the school received, the commitment of teachers to work as well as availability of teaching and learning materials at the affected school.

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The confirmed 100% failure of the entire

Mining

The Mineworkers Union of Zambia (MUZ) says government is still mute concerning the way forward of the operations of Konkola Copper Mines (KCM) and Mopani Copper Mines (MCM). The two mines are the economic bedrock of four major towns on the Copperbelt that include Kitwe, Chingola, Mufulira and Chililabombwe.

MUZ General Secretary George Mumba said the union is still anxiously waiting for the road map from government through the mines Minister Paul Kabuswe who has not shared anything on the matter noting that the union’s interest is to see that the two mines are brought back to full production.

Speaking in an exclusive interview with the Zambian Business Times – ZBT, Mumba said the best option is to have the locals run the mines as the country needs to have a footprint and if possible use the two mines as a yardstick for other mines. The other option find a proper equity partner.

He said government’s plan to achieve a 1.3 million tons of copper production this year 2022 is not attainable because some of the key operations like Mopani Copper Mines and Konkola Copper Mines still have unresolved issues adding that the two mines add some good numbers in terms of the total tonnage of Zambia’s annual production.

The union representative re-iterated that the workers, the community and even other stakeholders do not want to see Vedanta Resources coming back to run KCM mine because the company failed to honour the assurances that it had previously given to the nation.

“Vedanta tortured us, the mine was almost grounding to a halt. That’s why for us as workers’ representatives and even the community of the Copperbelt, we are very skeptical about Vedanta. The assurances that he [Vedanta owner] kept giving the nation, he didn’t honour.

So that is why for us as workers’ representatives, Vedanta is a wrong investor, their season has passed and they are  history, we don’t see anything different that they can do”, he said. Vedanta is not welcome back as per consensus of our members.

Vendanta’s image in Zambia was further hurt by a video recording that went viral on social media in Zambia were the Vedanta owner was mocking the Zambian leadership of late President Levy Mwanawasa on how he managed to dupe him and buy the copper mine for a song. This incident alone dented the company’s relations with the Zambian general public.

The Minister of Mines Kabuswe has given several assurances and indicative timelines for announcing the way forward on these two important copper mines but no substantive decision has been made. He has conducted physical tours of the two mines and assured that a way forward would be announced soon.

But the procrastination is daily costing the country as copper is currently enjoying excellent prices, which gives the negotiators on behalf of Zambia an upper hand. Moreover, the minister of Finance Situmbeko Musokotwane already announced that government had set a target of hitting 3 million tons of annual copper production in ten years, a goal that may become far fetched if KCM and Mopani fails to timely get back to optimum copper production levels.

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The Mineworkers Union of Zambia (MUZ) says

Tech

Chapter One Foundation has disclosed that the Zambia Information and Communications Technology Authority (ZICTA) has denied allegations that the ICT regulator was responsible for shutting down internet services during the recently held general elections on August 12 2021.

Speaking in an exclusive interview with the Zambian Business Times – ZBT, Foundation Executive Director Linda Kasonde said the hearing of the main case is coming up on 17 March 2022 and the authority’s position is that they were not responsible for the internet shutdown during the general elections.

The Foundation has taken on the ZICTA management and confirmed that they are proceeding with the judicial review in a matter where the ICT regulator – the Zambia Information and Communications Technology Authority has been taken on for the disrupted internet services (Social media services) in the country during and after the August 12, 2021 polls.

Kasonde said it was illegal for ZICTA to disrupt or block provision of internet services in the country. There was widespread complaints across the country by social media users after the services were disrupted without notice or reasons being given and the civil matter is currently at the high court.

She noted that the Non-Governmental Organisation has not taken out any criminal charges and the cases it is handling are civil matters in the civil registry, adding that the organisation challenged the decision of the authority to shutdown internet services and will soon find out what the actually happened through the court proceedings.

On 12 August 2021, which was the general elections day, ZICTA has been accused of shutting down internet services and communication in Zambia. The internet services were only restored after Chapter One Foundation got a court order the following day on the 13th of August 2021, ordering ZICTA to resume internet services in Zambia, particularly social media internet access such as WhatsApp, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

The Non-Governmental Organisation served ZICTA with the court order directing it to resume all internet services on 13 August 2021 but they failed to do so as at 07:30 hours the next morning. The non-governmental organization then subsequently instructed its lawyers to commence contempt proceedings against ZICTA for failing to abide by the order.

The internet services mostly for social media were only restored in the country on the 14th of August 2021. This situation raised suspicion that the shut down could have been used to tamper with social dynamics as well as hacking of the electronic electoral results transmission systems.

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Chapter One Foundation has disclosed that the

Lifestyle

GEARS Executive Director McDonald Chipenzi has questioned whether Europe has academically unqualified Members of Parliament in their parliaments after the European Union Election Observation Mission ( EU-EOM) recommended that Zambia scraps off the G12 academic qualification requirement for those seeking elective political positions.

Chipenzi said Zambia must instead advocate for upward adjustment of qualifications for position of Mayor/Chairpersons, MPs and Presidents from G12 academic to a degree qualifications for quality leadership and debate in parliament.

In an exclusive interview with Zambian Business Times – ZBT, Chipenzi has opposed the European Union Election Observation Mission (EU-EOM)’s recommendation to do away with the G12 academic qualification for one to aspire for elective political position.

He said in this millennial era, going back to those dark times when people went into these positions without defined qualifications, are long gone and now requires all to have some qualifications to their names.

Chipenzi explained that with the decentralisation process at its peak, having councilors, mayors/council chairpersons, MPs/Ministers and Presidents who can barely read and write or competently debate, dissect and analyse local, national and global issues will undermine the decentralisation process in Zambia and is tantamount to a democratic suicide.

The Governance, Elections, Advocacy, Research Services (GEARS) Initiative Executive Director said as of today, Zambia has enough secondary school and university graduates to provide leadership nurseries with qualifications to participate in politics and any field favourably.

“We have enough G12 graduates now than ever before to fill all layers of elective and nominative political positions in Zambia. Zambia now has more than one secondary school in each constituency and is not short of G12s”, he said.

He mentioned that further, the electoral demands that an MP can aspire for election in any constituency even where s/he is not registered from while to be a councilor and Mayor/chairperson, one has to be domiciled and registered in that district.

“For instance, in 2020 alone, 147, 055 pupils sat for school certificate examinations at G12 level. Out of the 147,055 candidates that sat for the examination, 94,010 (63.9%) obtained a full certificate, 49,032 (33.3%) obtained GCE certificate while only 4,013 (2.7%) actually failed”, he said.

“From the above, just for 2020 G12 graduates who obtained full G12 certificates and GCE are enough to fill all the elective positions at ward level (1852 seats), Districts (116 seats), Constituencies (156seats), vice president (1) and President (1) which is a total of 2,126 seats” Chipenzi said.

Chipenzi added, “Now, add the number of G12 graduates Zambia has since 1964 to 2021 and one thinks the country would fail to identify one for elective leadership? What is deficit is motivation among citizens to participate in partisan politics due to perceptions that politics is a dirty game and not qualifications”.

He has therefore opposed the scrapping off of the G12 academic qualification requirement as recommended by the EUOM adding that Zambia needs quality law and this can only be done with well-qualified elected leaders.

 

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GEARS Executive Director McDonald Chipenzi has questioned

Mining

As Zambia continues to lose millions of US dollars in lost production hours and revenues, the indefinite closure of Kasenseli gold mine has also put the build up of gold reserves by the central bank – BOZ in disarray, contributing to the current streak of the Kwacha depreciation.

A check by the Zambian Business Times – ZBT with the Zambia Gold Company Limited, the special purpose company set up to exploit gold reserves in Zambia has revealed that the date of re-opening of the gold mine is still a mirage.

Analysts say the prolonged closure of the mine by new mines minister Paul Kabuswe is resulting in lost revenue for the country. Building up of gold reserves was also signaling to currency speculators that the government of Zambia was stocking up an alternative war chest of assets to defend the Kwacha.

A further review by ZBT on the exchange rate shows that the Kwacha is again on a depreciating streak is is now trading for about K18.5 to the US dollar, coming from a lower base of about K16.1 to a dollar in the last four months.

The Zambia Gold Company disclosed that discussions concerning the future of Kasenseli Gold Mine, which is located in Mwinilunga district North Western province are still ongoing and whether operations at the mine will resume is dependent on the conclusion of the discussions.

Company Public Relations Manager Mathews Liyani said there is no agreed target date as to when the discussions will be concluded but once discussions with all the key stakeholders involved are concluded, the future of the mine will be decided.

Speaking in an exclusive interview with ZBT, Liyani said the company produced about 130kgs of gold since operations started at the mine in June 2020.

“Negotiations are going on and depending on how long it takes to conclude these negotiations with all the stakeholders,we might open the mine soon if the negotiations finish tomorrow,we will open tomorrow. The minister is consulting all stakeholders “, he said.

He noted that production at Kasenseli mine used to fluctuate depending on the conditions and the area the company was mining from at a particular time, adding that production was low during the rainy season because the area has too much rain which made Mining more challenging.

Liyani said from what was produced, the company sold about 110kg to the Bank of Zambia (BOZ) and still has the rest from the total production.

He explained that the first gold sale to the central bank was on 31st December 2020, which was 48kg worth about K59 million, the second sale was 20kg for the price of about K25 million, the third sale involved 17kg worth about K18 million and the fourth sale which happened in July 2021 was worth K24 million and involved 23kg.

Liyani revealed that everything that was produced from Kasenseli gold mine was being bought by the Bank of Zambia.

 

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As Zambia continues to lose millions of

Lifestyle

Livingstone residents have expressed concern over the delayed operationalizing of the newly built inter city bus terminal and the untra modern market five months after it was officially  opened. The residents have accused the council of lethargy.

A check with the Livingstone City Council (LCC) has confirmed that the Livingstone Intercity Bus Terminal and the ultra-modern market in Livingstone, which were commissioned in August 2021, are both not yet open to the public, a move that has a huge opportunity cost.

LCC Public Relations Manager Melvin Mukela said the Ministry of Local Government, the National Pension Scheme Authority (NAPSA) and the council are still ironing out certain issues and once concluded, the two facilities will be open to the public. He however did not disclose the specifics of the issues at play.

Speaking in an interview with the Zambian Business Times-ZBT, Mukela stated that the two facilities are not open because certain logistics were not put in place but he is confident that the two facilities will soon open. He however did not give a specific timeline.

On the value which the two facilities will give to the tourist capital of Zambia, Mukela explained that it is anticipated that there will be more business as people will be able to take up more shops at the modern market and bus station and that business will improve adding that the two facilities are modernized and passengers will be able to buy tickets online before going to the bus station.

“We are in the modern world and the bus station has been constructed in such a way that it is the state of the art, currently the situation is that Livingstone does not have a permanent bus station. We don’t have a shelter, so bus operators are operating in a difficult condition but once the bus station is open they will have a shelter, they will have a place where they can bath and proper toilets, so it will help both the commuters and the bus operators”, he said.

Mukela added, “You can buy bus tickets wherever you are, you go to the station and just present the receipt and be able to board any bus you wish to get on. It will operate like the way we operate at the airport”.

He mentioned that the local authority would also benefit because more revenue will come in as a result of the shops that will be operating at the bus station noting that the facilities have lifted the face of the district being a tourist capital. The LCC PR Manager added that the council and the residents are all longing for the facilities to be open to the members of the public.

The Zambian Government has over the past decade embarked on a massive infrastructure drive, which eventually led to debt accumulation  mostly due to the over 60% depreciation of the local currency – the Kwacha, making US dollar denominated debt serving unsustainable.

Productivity and economic efficiency remains one of the biggest challenges most emerging market countries like Zambia are facing. The country currently has notable infrastructure projects which are completed but not operational, while others are at over 70% completion stage, but are not being completed leading to costly wastage and huge opportunity costs of funds already invested.

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Livingstone residents have expressed concern over the