By&nbsp; Zinathi Gquma



What is it about finance ministers and farming? It seems that when they are not racking their brains over the national budget they can find happiness down on the farm, amid the cows, crops and clucking of chickens in the barnyard.



That appears to be the case for South Africa’s current and previous finance ministers. Tito Mboweni, the current finance minister is never happier than when he is on his farm in Limpopo in the north of South Africa. Mboweni puts videos of chickens and plants on his Twitter feed. &nbsp;



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="296" height="343" src="https://www.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/hqdefault-101-e1593178816521.jpg" alt="SA Finance Minister Tito Mboweni delivers his emergency budget" class="wp-image-374798" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/hqdefault-101-e1593178816521.jpg 296w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/hqdefault-101-e1593178816521-259x300.jpg 259w" sizes="(max-width: 296px) 100vw, 296px" /><figcaption>#SpecialBudget2020: Finance Minister Tito Mboweni delivers emergency budget (full speech)</figcaption></figure>



His predecessor, Nhlanlha Nene, who stepped down from office at the end of 2018, owns a 22- hectare farm in KwaZulu Natal. lt runs in his blood, Nene tells CNBC Africa in an exclusive interview, dressed more for the field than finance . Behind Nene, is a painting that proves his passion; a picture of Ringo, one of his prized bulls &#8211; a gift from a neighbour.



“Even when I was in office I would always retreat back to the farm, to gain some sanity…I love animals and I love nature, it is really therapeutic…nature gives you a sense of clarity,” he says.



“I grew up in a rural area, where my parents were subsistence farmers.”



Marrying his passion for finance and his joy of farming, Nene says that agriculture should be used by South Africans as a tool to lift individuals and communities out of poverty.



“COVID 19? This is a wake- up call that precious metals are no longer important, but agricultural products mean less imports, food security, employment and self- sustenance .We could lift ourselves out of poverty we will always be able to lift ourselves out of poverty and a lot of jobs could be created if we were to re-introduce that way of life (farming) to our people,” says Nene.

SOCIAL_PRM_NHLANHLA_28JULY

Why African finance ministers go farming.

On Wednesday, South African Finance Minister Tito Mboweni announced the appointment of Abel Sithole as the Chief Executive Officer of the Public Investment Corporation (PIC) and Executive Director on the Board of Directors.



The following statement provides more details:



APPOINTMENT OF MR ABEL MOFFAT SITHOLE AS CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER (CEO) OF THE PUBLIC INVESTMENT CORPORATION (PIC)



The Minister of Finance, Mr Tito Mboweni, is pleased to announce that Cabinet has approved that the Board of Directors of the PIC proceeds with the appointment of Mr Abel Moffat Sithole as the CEO of the PIC and Executive Director on the Board of Directors for a period of five years. The Chairman of the PIC, Dr Reuel Khoza, will elaborate on the process followed for the appointment and on the terms and conditions of the employment of Mr Sithole.



Mr Sithole is currently the Principal Executive Officer of the Government Employees Pension Fund (GEPF) and the Commissioner of the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA). Before joining the GEPF in 2015, Mr Sithole was a Deputy Executive Director at the Institute of Futures Research, University of Stellenbosch Business School. He also has a number of non-executive roles.



Mr Vuyani Hako, the Executive Head: Properties has been the acting CEO. Minister Mboweni said: “We thank Mr Hako for his contribution at the PIC, steering the organisation through very difficult times. We also congratulate Mr Sithole on his appointment as CEO and wish him well in leading the organisation and in restoring its integrity”.



Issued by the Ministry of Finance

Abel_Sithole2

Abel Sithole appointed as CEO of South Africa’s PIC

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) &#8211; South Africa’s economic growth is unlikely to reach the treasury’s target of 1.5% in 2019 because conditions have changed and the country is facing increasing headwinds, Finance Minister Tito Mboweni said on Friday.



This week ratings agency Moody’s, the last of the top three credit firms to rate South Africa’s debt at investment level, said it had lowered its growth forecast to 0.7% from 1%.



The central bank sees gross domestic product at 0.6% this year.



Both have cited slow economic reforms as the key drag on economic activity, and massive bailouts to state-owned companies, including 59 billion rand ($4.05 billion) to power firm Eskom.



This has limited the government’s scope for stimulus and raised debt while the resultant uncertainty has kept investment subdued.



“The assumptions underlying the forecasts have clearly changed &#8230; the actual deficit now is probably much higher,” Mboweni told a banking conference in Johannesburg.



He said that increasing calls for the treasury to bail out state firms was putting pressure on growth and spending.



“We must re-focus our economy on agriculture …but we also have to continue to support Eskom, because without electricity there is no growth,” Mboweni said.



A Reuters poll of economists this week forecast South African economic growth at 0.7% this year, up from 0.6% in the previous forecast. Second quarter growth bounced back 3.1% after a revised contraction of 3.1% in the first quarter.



($1 = 14.5521 rand)



Reporting by Mfuneko Toyana; editing by Andrew Heavens and Jason Neely

South Africa’s is likely to miss 1.5% growth target, here’s why

HARARE (Reuters) &#8211; Zimbabwe will repeal its indigenisation and economic empowerment legislation dealing with ownership of foreign-controlled companies and replace it with a new empowerment law, Finance Minister Mthuli Ncube said on Thursday.



Addressing parliament, Ncube also said foreign investors can now take majority stakes in the platinum and diamond sectors.



The empowerment law adopted in 2008 under Robert Mugabe forced foreign-owned businesses including mines to cede at least 51% shares of their local operations to black Zimbabweans.



In a bid to attract investment, President Emmerson Mnangagwa last year removed these requirements for other minerals except diamonds and platinum, which his government said were strategically important.



Reporting by MacDonald Dzirutwe; Writing by Olivia Kumwenda-Mtambo; Editing by Hugh Lawson

Zimbabwe to repeal empowerment law, what you need to know

NAIROBI (Reuters) &#8211; Kenya’s Finance Minister Henry Rotich pleaded not guilty on Tuesday to corruption charges over the award of two dam tenders, a day after his detention in an unprecedented move against a sitting minister in a country notorious for graft.



Rotich, who spent the night in a police cell, is accused alongside other senior officials of conspiring to defraud the public, among other charges.



Dressed in a grey pinstripe suit and yellow tie, Rotich denied the charges before a packed court in Nairobi. Not all the 28 accused were in court, but all the others present also pleaded not guilty.



The case stems from an investigation into the misuse of funds in two dam projects planned in western Kenya, overseen by Italian construction company CMC Di Ravenna.



Kenya also charged a director of the company, Paolo Porcelli, in absentia with conspiracy to defraud the country. Kenya will seek his extradition from Italy, director of public prosecutions Noordin Haji said on Tuesday.



“We will also issue an international arrest warrant,” Haji told Reuters, adding that company had not complied with a request to give statements to Kenyan authorities, he said.



CMC di Ravenna denied wrongdoing on Monday. “CMC is certain of the correctness of the work of the company and its representatives,” it said in a statement, adding it had not been informed of any official communication from Kenyan authorities.



Officials of the company were not available for comment on Tuesday.



The two dams were budgeted to cost 46 billion shillings ($446 million) but the treasury borrowed 63 billion instead, Haji said on Monday, needlessly ratcheting up Kenya’s ballooning public debt, which stands at around 55% of GDP.



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">ETHNIC DIVISIONS</h3>



The shilling has lost 0.5 percent against the dollar since Rotich was charged. It traded at 103.65 on Tuesday, reflecting market unease about the apparent vacuum at the top of the finance ministry.



Rotich has not been fired on formally resigned, and no replacement has been announced.



“(This) has created a power vacuum in Treasury, albeit temporarily,” a senior currency trader told Reuters.



Hasnain Malik, managing director of frontier markets equity strategy at London-based firm Tellimer, said Rotich’s arrest laid bare splits within the ruling Jubilee coalition.



The coalition was “openly divided” between Kikuyu supporters of President Uhuru Kenyatta and Kalenjin supporters of Vice President William Ruto, he said. Rotich is a Kalenjin.



Those divisions could curtail economic growth, with a cap on interest rates having already substantially shrunk credit to the private sector, he said.



“Kenyan growth is more reliant on effective public project spending because of the lending rate cap. A divided government is a problem,” he said. “Investors should worry that this arrest is a reflection of those divisions.”



Ruto has made clear he expects the coalition’s nomination for the presidency in the 2022 elections, when Kenyatta will have to step down due to term limits.



Haji also cited pressure stemming from politicians speaking to the media, but emphasised there had been no interference in his work.



“In terms of (interfering) phone calls, there was none, that I have to be very clear (about),” he told Reuters.



But “people (were) making a lot of noise that we were targeting a certain community. You know that area has been very volatile when it comes to clashes. So we were concerned.”



Some 1,200 people were killed in violence following the disputed 2007 national election. Kalenjin lands were a major flashpoint.



Additional reporting by Duncan Miriri, John Ndiso and Humphrey Malalo in Nairobi and Tom Arnold in London; Editing by Gareth Jones and John Stonestreet

Kenya’s finance minister denies corruption charges

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Nigeria&#8217;s former Finance Minister and Board chair of the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisations Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala says economically, for every dollar invested in health, you get twenty dollars in return. She discussed the rate of return on investments in health and how the cost of delivering health care services to families in Africa can be reduced.

How we can to reduce the cost of Africa’s health care delivery

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Ex-Mozambique Finance Minister, Manuel Chang found himself in court again this week to argue against previous ruling that his legal team think will get in the way of winning him a successful bail hearing. Chang was arrested in December last year for his alleged involvement in the issuance of $2billion worth of fraudulent loans. CNBC Africa spoke to Aly Khan Satchu, CEO of Rich Management for the background story of the bond scandal that led the country to default.

Mozambique ex-minister Chang’s scandal: What you need to know

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The bail hearing of ex Mozambique Finance Minister has been postponed to January the18th. Manuel Chang was arrested in December last year for alleged involvoment in a $2billion loan scandal that caused the country to default and foreigners to cut aid. 
Zacarias Cossa, Counselor for Police at the Mozambique High Commission had this to say after the ruling.

Ex-Mozambique finance minister’s court case postponed

By Monique Vanek
In the forward to Medium Term Budget Policy Statement (MTBPS) it warns that South Africa finds itself at a crossroads and highlights the difficult economic and fiscal choices confronting government over the next several years. These are the key takeaways:
Economic
• The consolidated budget deficit narrows from 4.2% in 2019/20 to 4% in 2021/22. 
• Gross debt is expected to stabilise at 59.6% of GDP in 2023/24. 
• GDP growth revised downwards to 0.7 from 1.5% in 2018 following a recession in the first half of the year. 
• GDP growth is expected to recover gradually to 2.3% by 2021 
• Global economy expected to continue growing at 3.7% 
• Tax revenue has been revised down by R27.4 billion in 2018/19, R24.7 billion in 2019/20 and R33 billion in 2020/21 relative to the 2018 Budget. This mainly reflects higher-than-expected VAT refunds. 
• In 2017/18, for the first time since the 2008 global financial crisis, tax revenue growth did not exceed GDP growth. 
• The cost of servicing government debt is expected to exceed 2018 Budget estimates by R1 billion in 2018/19, R4.9 billion in 2019/20 and R7.9 billion in 2020/21. This reflects a larger main budget deficit, currency depreciation and higher interest rates. An estimated 15.1 per cent of main budget revenue will be used to service debt in 2021/22 compared with 13.9 per cent in 2018/19. 
• Main budget revenue is projected to increase from 25.7% of GDP in 2018/19 to 26% of GDP in 2021/22. Main budget expenditure is estimated to remain stable at 30.2% of GDP over the medium term
Where the money will go
• The Medium-term expenditure framework commits public resources of R5.9trn over the next three years. Of this amount: 
&#8211; R3.3trn or 56.2% t will be allocated to education, health, the provision of water and electricity services, and social grants. 
&#8211; 
• Government is proposing reprioritisation of R32.4bn over the next three years. Of this amount: 
&#8211; R15.9bn goes towards faster-spending infrastructure programmes. 
&#8211; R16.5bn will be allocated to various programmes, including recapitalising the South African Revenue Service (SARS), a minimum wage for community health workers, critical posts and goods and services in health, and streamlining the management of the justice system. 
&#8211; In addition, changes to grant structures amounting to R14.7 billion will promote upgrading of informal settlements in partnership with communities. 
&#8211; Housing subsidies amounting to R1 billion will be centralised to better support middle- and lower-income home buyers. 
• In the current year, R1.7 billion is added to infrastructure spending (including funding for fast-spending school building programmes) 
• R3.4 billion is allocated to drought relief, mostly to upgrade water infrastructure aside funding for this purpose. 
• R3.4 billion is allocated in 2018/19 to provide water, improve infrastructure and offset the economic costs of drought. Funding is also provided for the South African Isotope Facility at iThemba Labs and, following approval through the Budget Facility for Infrastructure, for the MyCiti Phase 2A bus programme in the City of Cape Town. 
• R800 million added to the school infrastructure backlogs grant to complete approved projects. 
• R3.4 billion is allocated to the education infrastructure grant. Funds are also allocated to the same grant to continue repairing infrastructure damaged by storms and floods in KwaZulu-Natal in 2017. 
• The Department of Women has developed a framework to provide free sanitary towels to learners from low-income households. The project rollout is funded through the provincial equitable share. 
• Local government equitable share, which finances free basic services to low-income households and some administrative costs for municipalities, is expected to grow by9.4 per cent per year to R82.2 billion by 2021/22. 
• Over the medium term, public transport expenditure is expected to increase to R101.1 billion as integrated public transport networks are built and operated in 13 cities.
State owned entities
• South African Airways will receive R5 billion through a special appropriation bill to settle debt redeeming between now and March 2019. This will help to prevent a call on the airline’s outstanding debt of R16.4 billion, which is guaranteed 
• R1.2 billion is allocated to South African Express Airways. 
• The South African Post Office receives R2.9 billion to reduce debt levels
National Health Insurance
• R166 million added to the national health insurance (NHI) indirect grant (health facility revitalisation) component to procure medical equipment and to design a new academic hospital in Limpopo. 
• R546 million reprioritised within the NHI indirect grant to address the critical shortage of medical professionals in the health sector, and to procure beds and linen for health facilities.
Tax changes
• In 2019 annual adjustments to personal income tax brackets, levies and excise duties in line with inflation are expected. 
• White bread flour, cake flour and sanitary pads will be zero-rated from 1 April 2019.
Students
• The Department of Higher Education and Training is developing a funding framework to clarify students’ food, book, transport and accommodation allowances, and the obligations required of bursary students during and after their studies. 
• Funds recommended through the Budget Facility for Infrastructure, and from educational institutions and the department, will support the Student Housing Infrastructure Programme. Over the next 10 years, it will provide 300 000 new beds at universities, and technical and vocational colleges. 
• Over the medium term, an estimated R61.5 billion in revenue from the skills development levy will continue to expand participation in learnerships, internships and skills development programmes.
Land reform
• Government is working with the Land Bank to accelerate land reform and maintain the productive use of transferred land. 
• Under the Land Reform Programme, government will provide 30-year leases, enabling the Land Bank to extend loans to emerging farmers. 
• The Land Bank will use a combination of loans and grants to increase production through the Black Producers Commercialisation Programme. Funding from the comprehensive agricultural support programme grant will be reprioritised to produce foot-and-mouth disease vaccines.

SA’s #MTBPS2018: Key takeaways

By Monique Vanek
The public servants wage bill remains the single largest component of expenditure in the Medium Term Policy Framework, but with elections approaching in 2019 the Medium Term Budget Policy Statement (MTBPS) provided no concrete plans to address this, only stating that government is working on an approach to manage these pressures over the medium term.
According to the MTBPS, public servants compensation, accounts for 34.7 per cent of consolidated expenditure, and forms the major driver of spending pressures. The MTBPS highlights that “it is one of the fastest-growing items in the budget, increasing at an average of 11.2 per cent a year”.
It adds that “the 2018 public-service wage agreement (see box) exceeded budgeted baselines by about R30.2 billion through 2020/21. National and provincial departments are expected to absorb these costs within their R1.8 trillion compensation baselines over the same period.”
The MTBPS also states that “over the long term, government and trade unions need to agree on an approach that ensures fair remuneration and a sustainable wage bill”. 
An annexure to the MTBPS deflects that issue of the amount of public servants to earnings growth, stating that “earnings growth, rather than headcount, has been the major driver of the public-service wage bill over the past decade”.
The annexure says an analysis of compensation spending since 2006/07 reveals the following trends:
• The main driver of increased spending is large increases in wages and other employee benefits, rather than increases in employment. 
• The increase in average real wages is partly explained by above-inflation agreements reached between government and unions, but wage progression and promotion policies account for a considerable proportion of the rise. 
• Wages have increased most rapidly in the lowest ranks of the public service, compressing wage distribution. 
• Overall, the number of public servants has increased since 2006/07. Employment peaked in 2012/13, after which personnel numbers have fallen by just over 1 per cent. This decline is insufficient to contain real spending growth due to continued growth in real wages. 
• There is a significant amount of turnover in the public service, with as many as 6 per cent of personnel leaving in a given year.

#MTBPS2018: Public servants’ wages balloon, but headcount is not to blame

#MTBPS2018: A look at SA Finmin Tito Mboweni’s Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) &#8211; The South African rand was little changed early on Wednesday, as investor caution reigned ahead of a closely watched budget speech by the country’s finance minister.
At 0550 GMT, the rand traded at 14.2700 versus the dollar, a shade weaker from its close of 14.2625 on Tuesday.
Recently appointed Finance Minister Tito Mboweni is expected to announce revised budget deficit targets and growth forecasts, as well as measures to boost the economy and shore up struggling state-owned companies.
The tone of his medium-term budget speech will influence whether Moody’s strips South Africa of its last investment grade credit rating at a review expected after the speech.
“South Africa’s new finance minister will probably announce further fiscal tightening,” John Ashbourne at Capital Economics said in a note.
“This will likely placate ratings agencies, but supports our view that economic growth will remain weak.”
Government bonds were slightly stronger in early deals, with the yield on the benchmark instrument due in 2026 down 4 basis points to 9.125 percent.
Reporting by Alexander Winning; Editing by Sunil Nair

How is the South African rand performing ahead of finmin Mboweni’s mini budget speech?

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Nigeria&#8217;s Finance Minister Zainab Ahmed says Nigeria&#8217;s debt profile increased by design as the ERGP was designed to borrow more in the first two years, but lagging government revenues is impacting the ability to service the repayment of debt obligations. CNBC Africa&#8217;s Wole Famurewa caught up with her at the Nigeria Economic Summit in Abuja to discuss this and more.

Finance Minister Zainab Ahmed speaks about Nigeria’s debt strategy

CAPE TOWN (Reuters) &#8211; South Africa’s top anti-graft body said it would investigate whether the finance minister breached ethics guidelines over a state pension fund investment, piling pressure on Nhlanhla Nene as he faced questions about his future.
The office of the Public Protector said on Tuesday it would look into a complaint by the main opposition Democratic Alliance party about the investment, carried out when Nene was chairman of the fund and deputy finance minister.
There was no immediate comment from the minister who was due to travel to an International Monetary Fund meeting in Indonesia. He has in the past denied any wrongdoing connected to investments by the Public Investment Corporation fund.
On Monday, the rand initially sank more than one percent on a newspaper report that Nene had asked President Cyril Ramaphosa to sack him.
Business Day newspaper said the minister made the request after acknowledging in a hearing that he had visited the Gupta family, friends of former leader Jacob Zuma accused of unfairly winning state contracts.
Both Zuma and the Guptas have denied any wrongdoing.
Nene, who publicly apologised for not previously reporting the visits to the Gupta brothers, has not made any statements confirming or denying the report by Business Day newspaper.
The president’s spokeswoman told Reuters his office was not aware of any such request from Nene.
Asked repeatedly at a media event in Cape Town whether Nene still enjoyed his confidence and what the future might hold for the finance minister, President Ramaphosa made light of the questions and pretended there was something wrong with his hearing.
“I am hard of hearing. I actually have go to an ear (specialist) &#8230; see you later,” he said.
The rand later recovered some ground on Monday was flat in the morning session on Tuesday.
Additional reporting by Nomvelo Chalumbira and Ed Stoddard in Johannesburg; Editing by Andrew Heavens; Writing by James Macharia

South Africa’s finance minister to be investigated by country’s anti-graft body, what you need to know

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) &#8211; South African Finance Minister Nhlanhla Nene has asked President Cyril Ramaphosa to remove him after he admitted to visiting the home of the Gupta brothers, friends of scandal-plagued former leader Jacob Zuma, Business Day said on Monday, sending the rand lower.
Nene has become a divisive figure after testimony he gave at an inquiry into allegations of corruption by the Guptas, in which he admitted to the previously undisclosed visits. He made a public apology about the matter on Friday.
Zuma and the Guptas, who face numerous allegations of using their friendship for mutual self-enrichment, have consistently denied any wrongdoing.
Business Day cited unidentified government sources as saying that Nene made the request to Ramaphosa at the weekend. Nene did not answer calls for comment.
“Government sources said Nene approached Ramaphosa after the highly negative public reaction to his apology to South Africans on Friday for the meetings with the Gupta family when he served under Zuma,” the South African newspaper said.
It said the issue was likely to be raised at a meeting of the ruling African National Congress party later on Monday.
The rand fell more than one percent on the report.
Treasury spokesman Jabulani Sikhakhane referred Reuters to the presidency for comment. Ramaphosa’s spokeswoman Khusela Diko did not respond to phone calls.
Nene is a key ally of Ramaphosa, who reappointed him finance minister in a cabinet reshuffle shortly after he became president earlier this year.
Ramaphosa has made clean governance and the kick-starting of an economy mired in recession top priorities.
Several ministers and government officials have been implicated in the widening graft scandals around the Guptas.
One common theme that has emerged is visits to the family’s sprawling Johannesburg property, which is why there has been public anger regarding Nene’s revelations.
Nene has also been praised by commentators for standing up to Zuma.
He told the inquiry he was fired by Zuma in December 2015 for blocking deals that would have benefited the Guptas, particularly a $100 billion nuclear power deal with Russia that could have crippled Africa’s most developed economy.
But Nene’s opponents say he was involved in corrupt deals with the Guptas when he was deputy finance minister and head of the state pension fund. He denies ever helping the Guptas.
Opposition parties have called for his resignation.
Reporting by Ed Stoddard, Alexander Winning and Olivia Kumwenda-Mtambo; Editing by Joe Brock

Rand drops as South Africa’s finance minister asks Ramaphosa to remove him

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) &#8211; South Africa’s Finance Minister Nhlanhla Nene said on Wednesday he was fired by former president Jacob Zuma for refusing to approve contracts that would financially benefit the Gupta family, friends of Zuma accused of corruption.
Nene, who was giving testimony at a judicial inquiry into influence-peddling, said the main reason he was he was sacked was for rejecting a proposed plan to build a fleet of nuclear power plants. The project could have cost up to $100 billion.
Zuma and the Gupta family deny allegations they colluded to inappropriately divert state funds.
Reporting by Mfuneko Toyana; Writing by Joe Brock; Editing by Toby Chopra

#StateCaptureInquiry: Zuma fired me for refusing to approve Gupta deals – Nhlanhla Nene

LUSAKA (Reuters) &#8211; Zambia will abolish Value Added Tax (VAT) and replace it with a non-refundable sales tax in April, Finance Minister Margaret Mwanakatwe said on Monday, a move likely to help the government boost revenue collection and bring down mounting debt.
Mwanakatwe said the Zambia Revenue Authority (ZRA) would finalise audits of all outstanding VAT refund claims and collect any unpaid taxes before making the change.
“Sales tax is coming on April 1. We do not have a manufacturing base. There is no value addition,” Mwanakatwe said at a post-budget meeting with business people.
In her budget speech on Friday, Mwanakatwe said Zambia will introduce new mining duties and increase royalties to help tackle debt.
The International Monetary Fund has put on hold talk about an aid package due to Zambia’s debt levels which it describes as unsustainable.
ZRA said in July it had paid out 4.2 billion kwacha ($338.7 million) in VAT refunds, including 2.5 billion kwacha to the mining companies in Africa’s second-largest copper producer.
Analyst Chibamba Kanyama of the Economics Association of Zambia said the introduction of sales tax would boost revenue collection.
“The major thing is that it will stop the refunds. The government will also collect more revenue because there will be less cheating as tax will be on the final product,” Kanyama said.
Mwanakatwe said the government remained committed to settling the verified VAT refund claims accumulated before changing the law.
Zambia has been withholding some money owed to mining companies in tax refunds because the correct documentation has not been provided.
Mwanakatwe also said a study to determine the cost of providing electricity by state-owned Zesco Ltd, which was due to be completed this year, would finish in April next year.
“We are currently procuring somebody from the UK to come and do the study. We have said it must be done by April,” she said.
($1 = 12.4000 Zambian kwachas)
Reporting by Chris Mfula; Editing by Raissa Kasolowsky

finance minister

Why African finance ministers go farming.

Abel Sithole appointed as CEO of South Africa’s PIC

South Africa’s is likely to miss 1.5% growth target, here’s why

Zimbabwe to repeal empowerment law, what you need to know

Kenya’s finance minister denies corruption charges

How we can to reduce the cost of Africa’s health care delivery

Mozambique ex-minister Chang’s scandal: What you need to know

Ex-Mozambique finance minister’s court case postponed

SA’s #MTBPS2018: Key takeaways

#MTBPS2018: Public servants’ wages balloon, but headcount is not to blame

#MTBPS2018: A look at SA Finmin Tito Mboweni’s Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement

How is the South African rand performing ahead of finmin Mboweni’s mini budget speech?

Finance Minister Zainab Ahmed speaks about Nigeria’s debt strategy

South Africa’s finance minister to be investigated by country’s anti-graft body, what you need to know

Rand drops as South Africa’s finance minister asks Ramaphosa to remove him

#StateCaptureInquiry: Zuma fired me for refusing to approve Gupta deals – Nhlanhla Nene

Zambia is planning to introduce sales tax, what you need to know

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finance minister

Why African finance ministers go farming.

Abel Sithole appointed as CEO of South Africa’s PIC

South Africa’s is likely to miss 1.5% growth target, here’s why

Zimbabwe to repeal empowerment law, what you need to know

Kenya’s finance minister denies corruption charges

How we can to reduce the cost of Africa’s health care delivery

Mozambique ex-minister Chang’s scandal: What you need to know

Ex-Mozambique finance minister’s court case postponed

SA’s #MTBPS2018: Key takeaways

#MTBPS2018: Public servants’ wages balloon, but headcount is not to blame

#MTBPS2018: A look at SA Finmin Tito Mboweni’s Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement

How is the South African rand performing ahead of finmin Mboweni’s mini budget speech?

Finance Minister Zainab Ahmed speaks about Nigeria’s debt strategy

South Africa’s finance minister to be investigated by country’s anti-graft body, what you need to know

Rand drops as South Africa’s finance minister asks Ramaphosa to remove him

#StateCaptureInquiry: Zuma fired me for refusing to approve Gupta deals – Nhlanhla Nene

Zambia is planning to introduce sales tax, what you need to know

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