Minister of Finance and National Planning Situmbeko Musokotwane has called on parliament to approve a supplementary budget of K41.9 Billion for the 2024 financial year.
Delivering the Supplementary Estimates of Expenditure No. 1 of 2024 to parliament this morning, Dr. Musokotwane said the drought in the country has affected 9.8 million people, including the able bodied.
“The drought has brought about a significant crop loss which has threatened the food security as it has left a destructive impact on the agriculture production levels,” said Dr Musokotwane.
Dr. Musokotwane said the agricultural sector is now projected to decline by 19%, while there is a projected reduction in productivity across all sectors of the economy, due to electricity rationing.
He said as a result, the real GDP growth has been revised down to 2.3% from an earlier forecast, of 4.7%.
And Dr. Musokotwane has proposed an increment of K200 for beneficiaries of the social cash transfer program.
Bibiana Lambart
