According to a report released by international rating agency Moody’s Investors Service, real economic growth in Zambia will rise above 7% in 2015, which is just higher than the 2014 projection of nearly 6.5%.
While the report identifies a number of factors that continue to constrain the country’s credit quality, including high poverty levels and limited economic diversification, government efforts to address any infrastructure deficiencies are ongoing and the pattern of economic growth is expected to continue in the coming years according to Matt Robinson, a senior credit officer at Moody’s.
“Zambia’s economy continues to register robust growth rates, averaging 7.8% per annum in real terms since 2005,” he said, “We expect that economic growth will remain at around the same level in the coming years, supported by the development of infrastructure projects.”
Development projects that are currently in progress or planned to promote future growth include plans to develop connectivity, increase energy outputs, improve productivity within the country’s agriculture sector, and reduce the cost of trade with one-stop border posts, among others.