European Union support to the National Assembly Project equips Members of Parliament for the 2017 Budget Debate.

Deputy Clerk of the National Assembly, Mrs Cecilia Mbewe has said it is important for Members of Parliament to be provided with adequate information and background knowledge so as to enrich the debate and assist make informed recommendations to the House during the process of passing the Appropriation Act of 2017.

In a speech read on her behalf by Mr Steven Kawimbe, Principal Clerk of Committees on Saturday 12th November, 2016 at Protea Hotel Safari Lodge in Chisamba, she reiterated that providing technical guidance to the Expanded Committee on Estimates on what to look out for during the examination of the 2017 Budget Estimates is vital in attaining quality debate.

And in a vote of thanks, Hon Ambrose Lufuma, MP thanked the organisers and the experts for their presentations, and implored the Chairpersons to put to good use the experience and knowledge acquired from the workshop and share with Members of their Committees so as to enable them scrutinise the 2017 Budget in detail for the benefit of the Zambian people.

The Expanded Committee on Estimates sits to receive and consider submissions from various stakeholders after the Budget presentation. Membership of the Expanded Committee is comprised of members of the Committee on Estimates and all Chairpersons of the Sessional Committees. The Committee is chaired by the Chairperson of the Committee on Estimates, Hon Mwalimu Simfukwe, MP.

The workshop dealt with topical issues, facilitated by various expert, on:

  1. The Medium Term Fiscal and Econmic Programme: The Road to Economic Recovery Programme;

  2. Macroeconomic targets in the 2017 Budget;

  3. Real sector proposals in the 2017 Budget with emphasis on Energy, Mining and the Manufacturing sub-sectors;

  4. Social sector proposals in the 2017 Budget; and

  5. Real sector proposals in the 2017 Budget with emphasis on the Agriculture sector.

 

The two days workshop was organised under the auspices of the Support to the National Assembly of Zambia Project funded by the European Union whose aim is to strengthen the ability of the National Assembly of Zambia to perform its role as the apex of the accountability process in public finance management and the Budget.