K1.3bn CEEC Loans: Economic Expert Maxwell Where are the jobs?

According to the Citizens Economic Empowerment Commission […]

According to the Citizens Economic Empowerment Commission (CEEC), the Commission has disbursed over K1.7 billion through various empowerment initiatives since 2021, benefiting more than 85,321 people nationwide.

Furthermore, the Commission in July 2026 reported that its empowerment loans have created 245,000 jobs and trained 284,282 citizens in entrepreneurship and business skills countrywide.

 Meanwhile, speaking in an interview with Zambian Business Times-ZBT, Copperbelt-based economic and policy analyst, John Ng’andu said the figures show wide reach but raise questions about whether the funding is reaching businesses with the capacity to create significant employment.

 “That is an average of about K19,900 per person, which practically tells us that most of the money is going to micro and survival-level businesses, because K19,900 can buy stock for a market stall or tools for a carpenter but cannot buy machinery or hire five employees,” said Ng’andu.

 He said if job creation is the main objective, CEEC may need to increase funding towards established businesses with viable markets and stronger expansion plans.

“If the goal is job creation, we need to see the average loan size going up to between K200,000 and K500,000 for businesses that already have a business plan and a market, because the current numbers show wide reach but shallow impact on jobs,” said Ng’andu.

 The expert stated that the absence of clear data on claimed employment created by CEEC-funded businesses makes it difficult to determine the actual impact of the K1.7 billion disbursement.

 “Mostof the times, CEEC reports beneficiaries and if each of the 85,000 businesses hired just two more people that would be 170,000 new jobs, but we do not have that data, so CEEC should link its database to NAPSA and ZRA and report every six months on how many funded businesses registered new employees,” he said.

 Ng’andu added that CEEC should also direct more financing towards sectors such as agro-processing, manufacturing and mining supply chains because these businesses have greater potential to create multiple jobs.

 “For job creation, we should tilt the next K1.7 billion towards agro-processing, manufacturing and the mining supply chain because these sectors may require bigger loans but can create five to 20 jobs per business instead of one,” he said.

Ng’andu told ZBT that CEEC could further introduce different financing windows that separate small startups from businesses capable of becoming major job anchors.

 “We need a startup window of between K5,000 and K50,000 and another window of K250,000 to K1 million for job-anchor SMEs, with longer repayment periods and incentives such as converting part of the loan into a grant when businesses prove that they have created jobs,” he said.

Ng’andu said government should ultimately measure empowerment success by jobs created rather than the number of people receiving loans. “We should score applications by jobs per Kwacha, bundle larger loans with market linkages, business development training and access to industrial yards,” he said.

Article by Philip Sinkala