. Mutati

By JAMES MUYANWA in Washington, USA –
THERE is heightening interest among United States of American investors to invest in the Zambian economy following Finance Minister Felix Mutati’s strategy to market the country there.
Several investors and members of the international community have expressed confidence in Zambia’s economy during various engagements with the Zambian delegation during the ongoing International Monetary Fund (IMF)/World Bank annual general meetings.
Mr Mutati assured the international community that Zambia’s economy had come out of the doldrums and would post increased growth levels this year and next year.
Addressing investors during a meeting organised by the VTB Capital at the Hay-Adams Hotel on Friday here, Mr Mutati said that Zambia would build upon economic gains registered this year to post higher growth rate of about five per cent next year.
He said that under the home grown economic recovery programme dubbed, the Zambia Plus, the government had established measures to augment the growth of the economy this year and beyond.
The programme is premised on the need to augment the domestic revenue collection while slowing down on borrowing thereby reducing the annual budget deficits.
He said that measures had been put in place to improve the revenue collection by the public tax collector, Zambia Revenue Authority (ZRA), while various legal reforms in the budgeting and contraction of debt would help address various gaps.
He said that there had been low compliance level of 56 per cent among the taxpayers and the government had tasked the ZRA to raise that to 76 per cent starting from next years.