GOVERNMENT says the job losses in the mines and other related sectors have impacted negatively on the national coffers to the extent where the treasury is under pressure to fund capital and recurrent expenditure.
Minister of Finance and National Planning Situmbeko Musokotwane said the job losses meant reduced income from Pay As You Earn (PAYE) tax.
Dr Musokotwane said this in Kitwe yesterday in a speech read on his behalf by Copperbelt permanent secretary Villie Lombanya at the international conference on the global crisis and its impact on the mining sector.
The minister said the global economic crunch has placed a huge burden on government’s mandate to achieve the Millennium Development Goals and the demands of the Fifth National Development Plan.
He said there is need to adopt a multifaceted approach to develop economic sectors that are linked to value addition to create and sustain jobs.
Dr Musokotwane called for hard work and the use of co-operative effort to drive unit costs of production down as the economic recession and movement in metal prices was beyond the reach of the country.
He said there is need to develop a plan that should be used as the first intervention measure to save companies from being placed under care and maintenance or closure of operations.
Dr Musokotwane said Government is determined to play its role of formulating good policies that can make Zambia a good destination for investment.
Earlier, Zambia Congress of Trade Unions president Leonard Hikaumba said the union mother body is worried about the job losses in the mines.
Mr Hikaumba suggested that the country should consider supporting local investors instead of just looking up to foreign investment.
He said at a time the mining companies were making profits, they refused to share them with the workers but were quick to share the losses with them through job cuts.
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