Zambia refutes propaganda by western media on China call for debt destructing 

Published: February 16,2023

By Staff writer 

Zambian Minister of Finance and National Planning Situmbeko Musokotwane said that contrary to the Financial Times report, which was based on a media interview with him, he clarified that his country is “in no position to reject any proposals between China and the World Bank. Zambia’s focus was on achieving debt relief as soon as possible, he said, adding that delays in debt talks were affecting ordinary Zambians and their livelihoods.

Minister Situmbeko said that the government was hopeful of the good progress made so far in debt discussions. On the other hand, the Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Wang Wenbin said, “China attaches high importance to Zambia’s debt issue. We have played a constructive role in handling Zambia’s debt under the G20 Common Framework and facilitated the success of three meetings of the Creditor Committee for Zambia.” “As to the specific issues regarding debt treatment, the parties concerned are having friendly consultation in accordance with relevant principles,” he told media. 

Western media is obsessed with hyping the so called ‘China debt trap’ to create a bad image of China in Africa. The west is using media as a political tool against China. The reality however, is that African countries owe three times more debt to Western banks, asset managers and oil traders than to China, and are charged double the interest, according to a study done by British campaign charity Debt Justice in July 2022.