Editor’s Note: This article reflects the views of the author. It has been edited and rewritten to conform with The Zambian Economist’s editorial standards, while preserving the substance of the author’s argument. The views and opinions expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of The Zambian Economist. More articles by Eng. Willings Sichalwe: Ethics as Infrastructure, The Economics of Exclusion and Inside SouthGrid Engineering Consultants.
Key takeaways
- With the 2026 election decided, Eng. Willings Sichalwe argues that the harder test begins now: whether public appointments reward competence or political loyalty.
- Zambia slipped to 37 out of 100 on Transparency International’s 2025 Corruption Perceptions Index, down from 39, and 18 per cent of public-service users reported paying a bribe.
- Patronage carries a real economic cost: investors and local firms read opaque procurement and politically connected awards as risk, and redirect effort from performance to access.
- The author’s test for any major appointment is five questions, starting with whether the person is qualified and ending with whether the decision would survive open public scrutiny.
- Inclusion and merit are not opposives: Zambia can appoint people who are both competent and representative of all ten provinces without lowering professional standards.
Zambia’s 2026 general election is behind us and President Hakainde Hichilema has a second term. Eng. Willings Sichalwe, a Lusaka civil engineer, argues that the vote was the easy part. What follows, in ministries, parastatals and council offices across the country, will decide whether qualified Zambians keep believing that hard work pays.
Democracy Does Not End at the Ballot Box
Elections are not the end of democracy; they are the beginning of a new test of leadership, accountability and public service.
Citizens will judge the new administration not only by its electoral victory, but by whether it delivers decent jobs, reliable public services, economic opportunity and fair treatment. The central question for many ordinary Zambians is simple: will the years ahead create a country in which ability, integrity and hard work genuinely matter?
That question cannot be separated from Zambia’s continuing struggle with corruption, nepotism, political patronage and appointments based primarily on political loyalty. These problems have existed under successive governments and across parties. Their effects are becoming harder for citizens to ignore, as our coverage of the Auditor General’s findings on the Constituency Development Fund keeps showing.
The Politics of Hope and Disappointment
Every election generates expectations across Zambia. A young person hopes for employment. A graduate expects qualifications to open doors. A small business owner looks for access to finance and public contracts. A farmer hopes for reliable markets and effective agricultural support. A professional expects experience and performance to be recognised.
Those hopes curdle when citizens conclude that political allegiance matters more than merit. When support for the ruling party appears to be the easiest route to a government job, board appointment, consultancy or contract, the damage extends well beyond the individuals involved.
The graduate begins to ask why they should study and acquire professional qualifications if connections are more valuable. The experienced civil servant wonders why years of dedicated service should matter if political associates advance more quickly. The entrepreneur questions why they should invest in quality and competitiveness if contracts are awarded through relationships rather than capability, a dynamic we examined in detail in The Economics of Exclusion.
These are not merely private frustrations. They weaken the national culture of merit on which a modern economy and professional public service must be built. A country cannot develop strong institutions when its citizens lose faith in those institutions.
When Loyalty Becomes a Qualification
Political patronage is especially harmful when party loyalty becomes an informal qualification for public office.
An elected government needs people who understand and support its policy direction. Nevertheless, a person’s political affiliation should not automatically qualify them to manage a ministry, parastatal, public institution or major national programme.
The relevant question is not merely whether an appointing authority has the legal power to make a particular appointment. The more important question is whether the appointee is the best person for the role and whether citizens can reasonably have confidence in the decision.
A poor appointment has consequences far beyond the individual who receives the position. An unsuitable leader may delay decisions, disregard technical advice, weaken institutional discipline or expose a procurement-sensitive organisation to unnecessary suspicion. In infrastructure, water, health, education and local government, weak leadership translates into delayed projects, poor construction, unreliable services and wasted public resources. The ordinary citizen pays through deteriorating roads, inadequate health facilities, inefficient councils and lost economic opportunities.
Zambia Cannot Waste Its Human Capital
This challenge is particularly serious in a country where unemployment and underemployment remain major concerns, especially among young people.
Zambia has capable professionals in engineering, medicine, agriculture, law, finance, economics, education, information technology and public administration. Many have invested years in university education, professional training and practical experience. If these citizens come to believe that merit alone cannot advance their careers, Zambia risks losing more than individual opportunities. It risks losing the motivation, creativity and commitment required to build effective national institutions.
Some professionals may leave the country. Others may withdraw from public service, abandon their ambitions or seek political connections simply to remain competitive. In the long term, a system that rewards connections over competence discourages excellence. Patronage therefore does not only reward the wrong person. It also discourages the right people.
Inclusion Is Not Nepotism
Zambia’s regional and cultural diversity is one of its defining national characteristics. Citizens from every province should be able to see themselves represented in public institutions. Fair regional inclusion can strengthen national unity and reinforce the belief that the Republic belongs equally to all its citizens.
But inclusion must not be confused with nepotism. A person should not be appointed merely because they come from a particular province, ethnic group, political constituency or social network. Equally, qualified people should not be excluded simply because they come from a region that is politically unpopular or under-represented.
Zambia does not have to choose between merit and inclusion. It can appoint people who are both competent and representative of the country’s diversity. The proper standard should be clear: select qualified candidates, apply transparent criteria and ensure that the overall public service reflects Zambia’s population without lowering professional requirements.
Corruption Thrives Without Transparency
Corruption and political patronage reinforce each other because both flourish where decision-making is opaque and accountability is weak.
Corruption is not limited to the direct theft of public funds. It may involve inflated contracts, favouritism in procurement, conflicts of interest, preferential access to opportunities, abuse of public resources or decisions designed to benefit political allies.
Recent indicators show how serious the challenge remains. Transparency International’s 2025 Corruption Perceptions Index gave Zambia a score of 37 out of 100 and ranked the country 99th out of 182. The score declined from 39 in the previous index, while Transparency International’s Zambia data indicates that 18 per cent of public-service users reported paying a bribe in the preceding year.
These figures should not be read as a verdict that Zambia is beyond repair. They are a warning that progress against corruption cannot be assumed. Measures such as electronic procurement, digital payment systems, service charters and whistle-blower protections can improve accountability, but their success depends on consistent enforcement and protection from political interference. Transparency is meaningful only when it applies to everyone, including the politically connected.
Protecting the Professional Civil Service
One of Zambia’s most important institutional assets is a professional civil service.
Political administrations change, but ministries and public institutions must continue to serve the Republic. Permanent secretaries, directors, engineers, doctors, accountants, teachers and administrators should be able to carry out their duties professionally, regardless of which party is in government.
This does not mean that every career civil servant is automatically competent, or that elected leaders should have no influence over public administration. It means that recruitment, promotion and deployment should be grounded principally in performance, qualifications, experience and integrity.
When political cadres are perceived to be rewarded ahead of experienced professionals, institutions become fearful and unstable. Public officers may begin to focus more on political relationships than on serving citizens. A professional civil service should never ask which party a citizen supports before providing a public service.
Competence Must Begin at the Top
The same principle applies to Cabinet and other senior political appointments.
Ministers are not merely political representatives. They oversee major sectors of the economy and make decisions affecting millions of Zambians. A minister responsible for infrastructure should be able to engage meaningfully with technical advice. A finance minister should understand the economic implications of policy choices. A health minister should appreciate the complexity of service delivery, while an education minister should understand the challenges facing schools, teachers and learners.
Ministers do not need to be specialists in every technical matter; permanent secretaries, directors and professional advisers exist for that reason. But ministers must possess enough competence to ask informed questions, evaluate advice, challenge poor performance and take responsibility for decisions. Leadership is not simply the occupation of an office. It is the ability to lead the institution entrusted to one’s care.
The Economic Cost of Patronage
Political patronage also carries a significant economic cost.
Investors consider more than government speeches and policy documents. They examine the quality of institutions, the predictability of decisions, the transparency of procurement, the security of contracts and the professionalism of public administration. When business opportunities appear to depend on political connections, serious investors become cautious, and local businesses suffer as well.
A Zambian engineering consultancy, contractor, farmer, manufacturer or technology company should be able to compete on the basis of price, quality, experience, innovation and capacity. If firms conclude that political access is more important than performance, they will devote more energy to cultivating influential relationships than improving their services. That is not productive economic development. It is an economy organised around access, in which the connected few benefit while capable businesses and ordinary citizens are left behind. For Zambia to diversify its economy, create employment and attract credible investment, competition must be fair and public institutions must be dependable.
The Responsibility After 2026
The 2026 election demonstrated once again that Zambians care deeply about the country’s direction. President Hichilema was declared the winner and secured a second term, but the political tensions surrounding the vote also point to the need for continued attention to national cohesion and public confidence in institutions.
The responsibility of the governing leadership is now greater than winning an election. The next administration must show that the coming term belongs to all Zambians, including those who did not vote for the ruling party. That requires resisting the treatment of public appointments as rewards for political loyalty; selecting qualified people from different regions, backgrounds and professional disciplines; publishing and applying clear criteria for major appointments; strengthening independent oversight and procurement institutions; protecting whistle-blowers; ensuring that public resources are not used for partisan purposes; and recognising that political opponents are citizens, not enemies of the State.
Opposition parties, civil society, professional bodies, the media and ordinary citizens also have a role. They must demand evidence, ask difficult questions and hold leaders accountable without undermining national stability or spreading unverified allegations.
The Citizen Is Watching
For ordinary Zambians, these matters are not abstract discussions about constitutional principles. They concern whether a child will find work after graduating, whether a patient will receive treatment at a public hospital, whether a road will be properly constructed and maintained, whether a small business can win a contract without paying a bribe, and whether a farmer can access a government programme without knowing someone in authority.
At the heart of the matter is public confidence in the value of hard work, honesty and qualifications. Once that confidence disappears, it is difficult and costly to restore.
Rebuilding Hope Through a New Culture
Zambia does not need to eliminate political appointments altogether. Every elected government requires people who understand its mandate and can help implement its policies. What is required is a political culture in which political trust and professional competence coexist.
Before making a major appointment, leaders should ask five questions. Is the person qualified for the position? Do they have the experience required to perform effectively? Do they possess the integrity expected of a public officer? Does the appointment support fair national representation without compromising competence? And would the decision withstand public scrutiny if explained openly to citizens?
If the answer to these questions is yes, an appointment is more likely to command public confidence. If it is no, political convenience should not override the national interest.
Zambia does not lack talented people or hardworking citizens. It has professionals capable of building effective institutions and delivering development. What it needs is a system that gives those people a reason to believe that their effort matters.
Corruption, nepotism and political patronage do more than divert public money. They steal opportunity, confidence and motivation. Ultimately, they steal hope.
The ordinary Zambian does not expect every government decision to be perfect. Citizens expect fairness, competence and accountability. They expect taxes and natural resources to be used responsibly. They expect the doors of opportunity to be open to every qualified person willing to work.
A government that understands this will do more than win elections. It will build a Zambia in which citizens believe that their future is worth investing in. That is the Zambia worth working for: not a country where who one knows determines how far one goes, but one where what a person knows, what they can do and the character with which they serve determine the opportunities they receive.
Eng. Willings Sichalwe is a Civil Engineer and Council Member of the Future Leaders under the Association of Consulting Engineers of Zambia (ACEZ), specialising in infrastructure development with experience in roads, hydrology and project delivery systems. He writes on ethical leadership, institutional integrity and professional accountability in Zambia’s engineering sector.
Related reading: Ethics as Infrastructure: The Economic Case for Integrity in Zambia’s Engineering Sector, The Economics of Exclusion: How Financing Asymmetry Is Squeezing Zambian Contractors Out of Their Own Market, Inside SouthGrid Engineering Consultants and Beyond the Ballot, Zambia Turns the Page to Economic Delivery.
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