Govt’s move to limit borrowing will create room for private sector growth

THE decision by Government to limit borrowing to nine percent of the 2023 national budget create room for private sector lending albeit at reduced interest rates, according to Atlasmara Bank acting Chief Executive Officer Bobbline Cheembela.

Mr Cheembela expressed confidence that this measure by Government would reduce Government’s appetite for domestic borrowing and in turn create room for private sector led lending, albeit at reduced interest rates.

He said this at the 2023 national budget public symposium held in Lusaka recently.

“As a player in the Financial Services Sector I once again applaud you for making a commitment to limit domestic borrowing to only nine percent of the budget, a measure which we believe will reduce Government’s appetite for domestic borrowing.

On the 2023 national budget, Mr Cheembela said the bank applauded Government for this budget which had been positively welcomed by the citizenry.

AtlasMara Bank, he said, strongly believed that it could only thrive when the rest of the economy was thriving.

Mr Cheembela said with such a budget, Atlasmara bank was looking forward to 2023 with a lot of optimism.

“As a financial services sector player we are pleased to note that Government is being deliberate about financial inclusion and we welcome the suspension of the 15 percent excise duty for a year on Automated Teller Machines which is an important channel for commercial Banks to serve customers across the country.

“This measure will play a significant role as we plan to either replace old ATMs on our networks and consideration of any expansion to our over 100 ATMs that are located in all the 10 provinces of Zambia,” Mr Cheembela said.