Accountancy body calls for protection of whistleblowers, as country’s corruption rating stands at 98 out of 180

The Zambia Institute of Chartered Accountants (ZICA) has noted the need for government to strengthen protection of whistleblowers in order to fight corruption effectively.

Institute President, Yande Mwenye, also proposed the adoption of a legal framework that guarantees public access to information on corruption cases.

During a media briefing in Lusaka on Monday, Mwenye, said there was need to ensure that all public entities prepare and publish activity reports in a timely manner.

She called on government to also introduce a legal framework on comprehensive conflict of interest and asset disclosure system

“In 2022 the International Monetary Fund (IMF) mission undertook a governance and corruption diagnostic assessment and released a report with these specific recommendations,” Mwenye stated.

She said the institute took keen interest in the ongoing discussions and developments on the country’s efforts in the fight against corruption.

Mwenye added that it was gratifying to note that the 2023 Corruption Perception Index (CPI) released by Transparency International, revealed that Zambia significantly had improved its CPI score in the last 10 years.

“The CPI for Zambia has improved from 32 percent in 2011 to 37 percent in 2012, which was a significant increase and increased again to 33 percent within 1 year where it remained until 2016,” she stated.

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Mwenye said there was then a downward trajectory dropping to 33 percent until recently when it rose again to 37 percent in 2023.

She noted that that had consequently improved the country’s ranking by 18 places, from number 116 out of 180 counties in 2022 to number 98 out of 180 countries in 2023.

“As the report noted, while it is important to note the 4 point improvement in the CPI for Zambia, though unprecedented, it does not mean that the prevalence of corruption has reduced to zero,” Mwenya said.

She noted that corruption continued to be endemic in Zambia, as the country remained an under performer in the sub-region.

Mwenye cited countries such as Tanzania (40), South Africa (41), Namibia (49), Rwanda (53) and Botswana (59) as having all performed better than Zambia in 2023.

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