By Dr. Martin Mushumba
Good afternoon comrade DKB, my friend and brother. Thank you for the candid inquiry. I appreciate that your thoughts are already on the 2026 General Elections; that in itself is healthy for democracy. Let me respond in the same spirit of honesty, evidence, and policy; not slogans.
First, a point of context. When the United Party for National Development (UPND) assumed office in August 2021, Zambia’s economy was not merely underperforming, it was on life support. The country had defaulted on its debt, inflation was rising, the kwacha was weakening, investor confidence was battered, and key sectors, particularly mining, were collapsing. Any fair assessment of performance must begin from that baseline. 
Free Education: A Structural Reform
You asked me not to talk about free education but as a policy analyst, I must be honest: dismissing it misses the point. Free education is not a short-term populist fix; it is a structural, intergenerational investment. Its full dividends such as higher productivity, a skilled workforce, and reduced inequality will be most visible long after President Hakainde Hichilema has left office.
In fact, when someone insists that we should not even discuss such a transformative policy, it raises a legitimate question: why downplay a reform that directly expands human capital and national resilience? History teaches us that countries which sustain free and inclusive education reap compounding returns over decades, not months.
Load Shedding and Mealie Meal Shocks: Shocks vs. State Capacity
Yes, it is evident that load shedding and mealie meal shortages occurred. But policy analysis demands we separate exogenous shocks from government response.
• The drought of 2023/2024 was among the worst in recent history. Despite this, no Zambian died of hunger. The state acted decisively by mobilising the Zambia National Service (ZNS) and other security wings to stabilise mealie meal supply.
• What followed was not collapse, but recovery: the 2024/2025 farming season produced a bumper harvest, validating the government’s adaptive response.
On electricity, the UPND administration confronted hydro-dependence head-on with unprecedented investments in solar, thermal, and alternative energy sources, stabilising supply nationwide. Droughts, floods, and pandemics will always recur; what matters is state capacity to respond to such calamities and on that score, the response deserves credit.
The Bigger Picture: Policy Gains Beyond Education
The UPND administration’s gains go well beyond the education sector. Consider these macro and sectoral achievements recorded between 2021 and today:
1. Debt Restructuring Success: Zambia’s debt restructuring restored fiscal breathing space from a suffocating debt. This helped in freeing resources for education, agriculture, health, markets, roads, bridges, and rural electrification.
2. Jobs and Social Services: Tens of thousands of teachers, health workers, council employees, and defence personnel have been recruited. Social protection has expanded through Social Cash Transfer and Cash for Work programmes.
3. Mining Revival and Investment: Long-closed mines have been restored, creating jobs. Artisanal mining has grown unprecedentedly, while large-scale investments have returned, all signalling renewed confidence in Zambia’s policy environment.
4. MSME and Private Sector Revival: Support for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) and public–private partnerships has put the economy back on track, stimulating local enterprise and innovation.
5. Tourism Growth (2023–2025): Tourism arrivals have surged to record levels, injecting foreign exchange and revitalising local economies.
6. Food Security and Industrial Policy: New fertiliser manufacturing plants within Zambia are mitigating shortages and reducing reliance on imports. This is in itself is an important structural correction.
7. Macroeconomic Stabilisation: Inflation has moderated, the kwacha has stabilised and strengthened against major currencies, and investments are flowing into manufacturing, energy, mining, and roads. There is sustained drop in fuel prices and the cost of living has continued to drop.
8. Locally Driven Development Via Repurposed Constituency Development Fund (CDF): Under the UPND administration, communities have been empowered to determine their own development paths in line with locally identified priorities. This transformative approach has been enabled by the expansion of the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) and the implementation of the decentralisation policy. Through CDF, community development has adopted a bottom-up model, resulting in the expansion of classroom spaces, the construction of new schools and health facilities, the significant rehabilitation of existing ones, and the promotion of quality education through the provision of staff housing and more desks. Similarly, new markets have been established, and the local road network has recorded notable improvements.
Let me be clear: recovery is never frictionless. Some challenges will persist and this is normal after years of mismanagement and compounded shocks. But the trajectory matters. By every serious policy metric; macroeconomic stability, investor confidence, social protection, infrastructure revival, and institutional reform, the UPND government has put Zambia back on track.Today, the toughest decision confronting a rational Zambian is to find a reason why they should not to vote for the UPND administration in the 2026 general elections.
So, my comrade, I urge you: support this recovery. There is no credible justification to doubt the direction we are taking or even to dream of reversing it midstream. Zambia does better when we build on progress, not when we pretend it does not exist. That, in my professional judgement, is the honest policy position.
For these reasons, I say without apology and without partisanship that UPND has earned the case for re-election.
The author is a Public Policy Analyst and Higher Education Quality Assurance Specialist
