Cabinet approves 2027 Budget for Friday's presentation to Parliament

Cabinet has approved the proposed 2027 National Budget, which Finance and National Planning Minister Situmbeko Musokotwane will present to the National Assembly on Friday, 6 November. The decision was announced in a statement by Chief Government Spokesperson Elvis Nkandu on Tuesday, after the third Cabinet meeting of President Hakainde Hichilema's second term, held at State House. The statement said the country is on a positive economic path and that keeping the economy stable is key to the Grow Zambia Agenda. Cabinet called for careful handling of public money in 2027 as government turns the agenda into programmes and activities. It gave no total for the Budget, no revenue target and no sector allocations. ## Background Mr Musokotwane told ministers at a Budget orientation at the Mulungushi International Conference Centre last week that the 2027 Budget would reflect a collective Cabinet position rather than individual ministers' demands, and that ministers would have to explain and defend their allocations before parliamentary committees once it is presented. He said the August general election had disrupted the usual Budget calendar, which normally starts around July. ## Why it matters The Budget decides what happens to the things ordinary Zambians feel every month. Workers' unions have asked for lower PAYE rates of 15, 20 and 25 percent. Pump prices for November are K33.06 a litre for petrol and K34.45 for diesel, after an increase of more than K6 last month when excise duty returned. Inflation rose to 6.3 percent in October, driven mainly by non-food prices. Zambia's credit rating was lifted by Moody's from Caa2 to Caa1 on 30 October, which lenders and the Ministry of Finance have described as a sign of improving debt management. Most Zambians do not borrow from banks, so the Budget matters to them through tax, fuel, food prices, farmers' payments and what clinics and schools receive. ## What happens next Mr Musokotwane presents the Budget to the National As