Zambia's bank chief confident in stable economic growth

Zambia will continue posting positive economic growth in the coming years as the economic gains that the country has achieved have set the stage for future sustained growth, Bank of Zambia (BOZ) governor Caleb Fundanga has said.

"We see the future of Zambia's economy as one which is highly diversified through resuscitating the industrial base to enable increased value addition and employment creation," the bank chief was cited by Sunday's Times of Zambia as saying when he addressed a business forum over the weekend in Ndola, 360 km north of Lusaka.

Fundanga pointed out that Zambia had from 2001 to 2005 posted growth in real gross domestic product (GDP) which had averaged 4.7 percent per annum.

He said the growth had been broad-based, extending beyond the recovery of the mining sector, and last year it was recorded at 5. 0 percent making the seventh consecutive year of positive growth.

The bank chief also attributed the growth to the expansion in construction driven by a robust demand for housing as well as large scale investment which led to a pickup in mineral production, particularly copper.

The improved economic confidence following the attainment of the Heavily Indebted Poor Country (HIPC) initiative completion point, which resulted in reduced external debt service obligations as well as increased foreign direct investments, reflected increased market confidence in the economy, Fundanga said.

Source: Xinhua