Zambia upbeat about debt agreement

Zambia's Finance Minister said this Wednesday that the country is working hard with creditors, including China, in order to agree a debt restructuring by the end of March or shortly afterwards.

According to Situmbeko Musokotwane, China, Zambia's largest bilateral creditor, was being engaged on the debt restructuring with bilateral engagements on an almost weekly basis.

Zambia's external debt stood at $14.87 billion at the end of June 2022, the minister said previously.

Chinese lenders accounted for almost $6 billion of debt at the end of 2021, according to government data.

Zambia was the first African country to default on its sovereign debt during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, but the restructuring of its external debts to creditors including China and Eurobond holders has been greatly delayed.