Metro

Zambia receives $100m World Bank grant to support energy sector

Published

9 months ago

March 18, 2024

The Zambian government has announced receiving a $100 million grant from the World Bank Group to support its energy sector.

The new grant is coming barely a month after the World Bank approved a grant of $270 million under the Transport Corridors for Economic Resilience (TRACER) Project.

Finance and National Planning Minister, Dr Situmbeko Musokotwane, who disclosed this in a statement in Lusaka on Sunday, said the grant would be implemented under phase one of the Zambia National Energy Advancement and Transformation (NEAT) programme, covering the period 2023 to 2033.

Musokotwane stated that the NEAT programme was “designed to increase financial sustainability, operational reliability and resilience of the electricity sector in Zambia.”

He stressed that the programme’s total resource envelope would gulp $700 million for over a period of 10 years and the World Bank’s first energy project in Zambia since 2018.

Musokotwane explained that the NEAT programme would adopt a Multi-Phase Programmatic Approach (MPA) over the estimated 10 year period.

“Under phase one of the NEAT programme, a grant of $100 million had been approved for disbursement from the pledged total of US $700 million, scheduled for disbursement between 2024 and 2026,” the minister said.

Musokotwane also explained that the World Bank disbursement of the grant was a “clear demonstration of the confidence the Bank had on Zambia’s home-grown strategic reforms and in the country’s recently strengthened public financial governance credentials, among other factors.”

“The Government of the Republic of Zambia conveys a special appreciation to World Bank Group, President Ajay Banga, and his teams at headquarters, in the region and the country office, for the exceptional generosity,” Musokotwane said in the statement.

“The World Bank’s approval of the NEAT Programme is timely because it will deliver immediate financial boost to ZESCO and support the procurement process for non-hydropower renewables at this critical time when Zambia is experiencing an extensive drought.”

The Minister added that for the Rural Electrification Authority (REA), the grant would be “channeled towards operationalization of the Rural Electrification Fund to ensure financial sustainability of capital expenditure for social objectives while increasing energy access for the country’s outlying areas.”

He noted that the NEAT Programme would further augment the government’s efforts in enhancing reliability and climate resilience of the electricity sector by supporting implementation of the ZESCO strategy for improved customer management, reliability of supply and system resilience to climate change.

“Save for the devastating effects of the drought, which we will able handle to ensure that none of our fellow citizens starve, our reform process is on course,” Musokotwane said.

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Metro

Zambia: FOX report highlights persistent media harassment, calls for reforms

Published

11 hours ago

December 18, 2024

Isaac Dachen

A new Freedom of Expression (FOX) report by the Media Institute for Southern Africa (MISA) Zambia, has raised concerns over what it describes as the continued harassment of media professionals in the country despite collective efforts to safeguard freedom of expression.

The FOX Report serves as a call to action for all stakeholders to create a safer and more enabling environment for the media to operate without fear or intimidation.

Chairperson of the MISA-Zambia Board, Lorraine Mwanza, who raised the concerns while launching the report on Tuesday at the Pamodzi Hotel in Lusaka, highlighted that journalists and media practitioners in the country still faced intimidation, censorship, and violence for fulfilling their role of informing the public.

“The harassment of media professionals is a stark reminder of the threats posed to democratic values and the fundamental rights to seek, receive, and impart information without fear or hindrance,” Mwanza said.

She expressed solidarity with those who are targets of attack, and reaffirmed MISA’s commitment to defending journalists’ rights and protecting the integrity of the profession.

Mwanza further called on the government to address barriers preventing journalists from accessing public officials, emphasizing that public officials were custodians of critical information necessary for informed decision-making.

“When citizens have access to government data, they can better understand policies, monitor public spending, and advocate for change in their communities,” Mwanza noted.

She also appealed for the review and repeal of laws that undermine democracy, stressing the importance of enacting legislation that guarantees media freedom, freedom of expression, and digital rights, and commended the government for responding to calls from civil society organizations to withdraw the controversial Cyber Bills from Parliament.

Ministry of Information and Media Permanent Secretary, Thabo Kawana, in a speech read by Ministry Director Mordern Mayembe, reaffirmed government’s commitment to upholding media freedom and freedom of expression in Zambia.

Metro

Nigeria: 614,937 killed, 2.2m abducted in 1 year— Report

Published

20 hours ago

December 18, 2024

Isaac Dachen

A new report released on Tuesday by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has revealed that over 614,937 Nigerians were killed and 2,235,954 others kidnapped across the country in one year between May 2023 and April 2024.

The NBS report, titled, “The Crime Experienced and Security Perception Survey (CESPS) 2024”, says based on the surveys conducted between May 2023 and April 2024, the 2.2 million Nigerians who were kidnapped across the country paid a whopping N2.2 trillion as ransom, with an average amount of N2.7 million per incident.

The report also disclosed that murder rate was highest in rural areas with 335,827 incidents and 279,110 in urban areas.

A zone-by-zone analysis of the report showed that the North-West had the highest murder cases of 206,030, followed by the North-East which stood at 188,992, while the least was recorded in the South-West at 15,693.

The report also revealed about seven in 10 households reported murder cases to the police nationwide with 33 per cent of households responding that the killer was an unknown person, and 23.4 per cent confirmed that the murderer was a member of the household; while 1.0 per cent reported that the murderer was either a spouse or a lover.

The report said 1,668,104 persons were kidnapped in rural areas and 567,850 in urban areas with the North-West having the highest cases of kidnapping with 1,420,307 abducted, followed by the North-Central with 317,837 and the South-East at 110,432.

“Of the estimated amount of N2.2 trillion payments to free victims, the North-West reported the highest ransom paid with N1.2 trillion; while the South-East was the least with N85.4 billion.

“Disaggregated by zones, the North-Central reported the highest proportion of payment of ransom at 83.4 per cent, followed by North-East at 78.6 per cent.

“Households in urban areas paid an average of N3.7 million compared to N2.3 million in rural areas,” the report stated.

It added that about 91 per cent of kidnapping incidents were done for ransom in the form of money, goods or other benefits.

“While 2.4 per cent of cases were attributed to political, criminal, or terrorist objectives; 2.1 per cent were linked to personal or family disputes. Custody disputes accounted for 0.5 per cent of cases,” the report said.