The Bank of Zambia is the central bank of Zambia. According to its website, the principal responsibility of the bank is to create and implement monetary policy that will maintain the economic stability of the country.

The Bank is active in promoting financial inclusion policy and is a leading member of the Alliance for Financial Inclusion. It is also one of the original 17 regulatory institutions to make specific national commitments to financial inclusion under the Maya Declaration during the 2011 Global Policy Forum held in Mexico.

The bank's offices are located in Lusaka.

History

The Bank of Zambia has origins in the 1938 formation of the Southern Rhodesia Currency Board, which was based in Harare, in present-day Zimbabwe. The Board's jurisdiction included Northern Rhodesia (present-day Zambia) and Nyasaland (present-day Malawi).

In 1954 the Southern Rhodesia Currency Board was renamed the Currency Board of Rhodesia and Nyasaland, and as the winds of change were strong in Africa at the time, the currency board was transformed into the Bank of Rhodesia and Nyasaland in 1956.

In 1964 the Bank of Zambia was created from the Bank of Northern Rhodesia, which itself had only formed a year earlier in 1963 from the Lusaka branch of the Rhodesia/Nyasaland bank.

After its creation, and after the passage of the Bank of Zambia Act in 1965, the bank grew and was successful down through the decades. According to its website, the bank acquired an equity stake in the Development Bank of Zambia and the Zambia National Commercial Bank and was even considering diversifying into the agricultural sector.

In 1991, the Movement for Multiparty Democracy (MMD) came to power in Zambia, replacing the United National Independence Party (UNIP) which had ruled for 27 years. The new government's fiscal priorities included liberalization and privatization, which included the Zambian copper industry and Zambian Consolidated Copper Mines (ZCCM), the big company that controlled copper production in Zambia.

Vision Statement of The Bank of Zambia

"To be a dynamic and credible central bank that adds value to the economic development of Zambia".

Functions of The Bank of Zambia

• To ensure appropriate monetary policy formulation and implementation;
• To act as the fiscal agent of the Government;
• To license, regulate and supervise banks and financial service institutions registered under the Act to ensure a safe and sound financial system;
• To manage the banking, currency and payment systems operations of the Bank of Zambia to ensure the provision of efficient and effective service to commercial banks, Government and other users.

Values of The Bank of Zambia

Employees of the Bank of Zambia shall at all times endeavor to direct their efforts towards the achievement of the Mission of the Bank by consistently following the Values encapsulated in the BoZ Way, which means ACTION for :

• Accountability - We will accept the consequences of the decisions and actions that we take.
• Commitment to excellence - We will always identify, agree and meet the requirements of both internal and external stakeholders and honor the commitments we make on time and to the highest quality.
• Time - We will always be on time in attending to Bank business.
• Integrity - We will work with honesty and integrity and be sincere in all our dealings .
• Objectives - We will set ourselves challenging, specific and measurable objectives and will work diligently towards achieving them within the targeted time frame.
• New Ideas - We will be open to new ideas and develop for ourselves and our colleagues the necessary skills to meet current and future challenges.

Values for Bank of Zambia as an institution in relation to its stakeholders, namely:

• Efficiency - The Bank of Zambia will strive to accomplish its work with minimal resources and in a time-frame appropriate for the tasks at hand.
• Transparency - The Bank of Zambia will frequently communicate with governmental authorities, the National Assembly and the public concerning its policies, operations, and financial condition that will enable its stakeholders to assess the Bank's performance in relation to its objectives.
• Accountability - The Bank of Zambia will be accountable for its policies and operations in relation to its mission.

Bank Structure

Since it's inception the Bank of Zambia has gone through various changes in it's organisational structure. Overtime, this has resulted into an organisational structure which has become more focused on the core activities of the central bank.

Furthermore the Bank has shed off staff in areas where outsiders could easily be contracted to provide the same services more satisfactorily. The areas now being contracted to external bodies include: outside security, canteen services, club and maintenance. As a result of the restructuring exercise, the Bank has seen the total number of staff fall from 1,400 to well below 850. But while more such functions have been dropped, others more critical in the new liberalized environment have emerged. These new areas are mainly in the policy making arena.

The Board of the Bank of Zambia is composed of the Governor,who is the Chairperson, and six other Directors appointed by the Minister of Finance and National Planning from among persons with professional or academic experience in business or financial matters and who are not officials or employees of the Bank. All Directors of the Board are non-executive directors.

The Secretary to the Treasury is an ex-officer member of the Board and without power to vote. The Secretary to the Treasury also does not count for a quorum. The Vice Chairperson is elected by the Board from among the members of the Board. Directors of the Board are appointed for a period of three years and are eligible to be reappointed for another three years.

The Board is the overall authority in which all the power of the bank are vested. It is responsible for formulation of the Bank of Zambia policy.

Useful links

Currency of Zambia:

Zambia kwacha

List of Central Banks:

Central Banks

Official website of Bank of Zambia:

www.boz.zm

The Bank of Zambia Act:

www.boz.zm

Ministry of Finance and National Planning:

www.mofnp.gov.zm