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Some stakeholders have accused the Bank of Zambia (BoZ) of halting the full implementation of its Export Proceeds Tracking Framework, despite the system reportedly generating US$6.5 billion.
Critics argued that the central bank’s lack of enforcement had led to non-compliance among exporters, adversely affecting the Zambian economy.
The Private Sector Development Association (PSDA) Chairperson, Yusuf Dodia, voiced these concerns during an interview with journalists on Sunday.
He pointed to the continued depreciation of the Kwacha as evidence that the Framework has not been fully implemented.
“The Framework has been more or less halted, but the impact to Zambia is that we are suffering from a shortage of foreign currency,” Dodia claimed.
He suggested that the Framework might have been quietly withdrawn or put on hold, allowing companies to keep their export earnings abroad in defiance of the regulations.
Read more: ZRA begins implementation of Export Proceeds Tracking Framework
Dodia further criticized the recent increase in the Statutory Reserve Ratio, which rose from 11 percent to 26 percent, arguing that it reduces liquidity in the economy and hampers growth and business activities.
“We have seen the Statutory Reserve Ratios going up from 11 percent to 26 percent, meaning 26 percent of all amounts of money deposited in banks are deposited at BoZ for safekeeping, reducing liquidity in the economy, thereby limiting growth and business transactions in the country,” he stated.
In response, the BoZ has denied these accusations, maintaining that the Export Proceeds Tracking Framework was functioning “reasonably well.”
BoZ Deputy Governor-Operations, Francis Chipimo, acknowledged that the system was still in the process of being fully implemented, with the services sector expected to be incorporated by January next year.
At the Monetary Policy Rate announcement in Lusaka on Wednesday, Chipimo provided an update on the Framework’s progress.
“We are receiving information on the trade side, and this is coming from the ZRA database. We are also receiving information from our side—from the commercial banks—and we are bringing these databases together to compare,” Chipimo explained.
He noted that while US$6.5 billion has been recorded on the system so far, only US$2 billion has been fully reconciled, partly because the services side of the Framework has not yet been implemented.
Chipimo assured that efforts were ongoing to address the current gaps in the system and that the full implementation of the Export Proceeds Tracking Framework remains a priority for the central bank.
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