Hakainde Hichilema waves at the crowd after taking oath of office at the Heroes Stadium in Lusaka, Zambia, in this August 24 2021 file photo. Picture: GETTY IMAGES/SALIM DAWOOD
Hichilema’s landslide victory in the election last month placed him in control of an economy with a “bigger hole” than he envisaged, having last year become Africa’s first pandemic-era sovereign defaulter. Years of government budget blowouts fuelled by over-borrowing left the state with at least $12.7bn in external debt, according to the most recent official figure.
An accurate picture of the nation’s debt may help remove a roadblock for talks with bondholders. It may also improve chances of a bailout deal with the IMF, a prerequisite for any debt restructuring. Zambia’s $1bn in bonds maturing in 2024 rose 1.6% to 79c on the dollar London on Tuesday, the highest level since March 2019.