Q FM Africa's Modern Radio
PMRC Executive Director Bernadette Deka
Policy Monitoring and Research Centre (PMRC) has called on government to devise a National Infrastructure Delivery Plan 2017-2021 that will be part of the Seventh National Development Plan.
The Center feels that this will bring together all of the government’s plans and resource estimates for economic infrastructure development over the next five years.
In a statement on understanding Zambia’s economic Recovery programme, PMRC Executive Director Bernadette Deka says improving domestic revenue mobilization remains critical for the Government’s fiscal agenda.
Ms Deka says efforts to broaden the tax base have encompassed a wide range of initiatives, focusing both on internal operational issues of the revenue collector and the external environment of revenue collection, particularly the interface with tax payers.
Ms Deka has proposed that government must support ZRA to reform and restrict the PAYE practice that allows returns to be made without payments, particularly given that Section 71 of the Income tax Act stipulates that payment shall be deemed to be made when the emolument is received.
She has also proposed that government must improve the minerals diversification strategy away from a skewed focus on copper to balanced focus on other minerals through exploration for and research and development in oil, natural gas, semi-precious minerals, and precious minerals with robust production monitoring mechanisms, including as supported by like-minded cooperating partners.
Ms Deka also notes that the precedence of reducing spending on roads, especially the unplanned road spending should be maintained and possibly enhanced.
She recommends that the government should consider all infrastructure projects only on the basis of full project appraisals, prioritizing high economic return project in energy and other services; and should carefully match the projects with adequate term financing from affordable sources.