THE Zimbabwe Coalition on Debt and Development (Zimcodd) has urged Parliament to push for debt cancellation during the 2019 budget consultations.
BY TATIRA ZWINOIRA
Zimcodd representative Tendai Babo told Parliament’s committee on budget, finance and economic development during consultations in Harare on Friday that the government debt had reached crisis levels.
“Parliament must come up with a total debt cancellation strategy,” she said.
“How did our debt grow to $18,4 billion and is expected to reach $20 billion by year end?
“Government spends too much money and this is not sustainable considering we are broke, they cannot control the debt.
“This is why a clear roadmap of total debt cancellation needs to be introduced.”
The participants at the consultations said the government must control its expenditure.
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David Sibanda, a Harare resident, said the government must cut wasteful expenditure and fund social services.
“Instead of traveling outside the country which requires foreign currency, why not use more of the diplomats living in those countries so that we save?
“It is not necessary for a whole team to constantly travel all the time,” he said.
Babo said government’s publicised debt resolution strategy, known as the Lima plan, was not sustainable as the country might end up mortgaging its resources.
The Parliament budget office warned recently that government’s tendency to finance its expenditure through Treasury Bills and running an overdraft with the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe was worsening the debt situation.
