Ex-Zambian Foreign Minister Joseph Malanji Jailed for Corruption

 A Zambian court on Thursday sentenced former foreign minister Joseph Malanji to four years in prison with hard labour for corruption.

Malanji, who served under ex-president Edgar Lungu between 2018 and 2021, was accused of using embezzled funds to acquire luxury assets, including two helicopters. He was arrested in 2021 alongside Fredson Yamba, a former treasury secretary, who was handed a three-year jail term for unlawfully transferring over $8 million to Zambia’s mission in Turkey.

Magistrate Ireen Wishimanga, while acknowledging the pair were first offenders, ruled that the seriousness of the offenses warranted custodial sentences.

The case marks a rare win for state prosecutors in Zambia, which ranks among the world’s most corrupt countries, according to Transparency International.

The two are the first senior officials from Lungu’s administration to be jailed since President Hakainde Hichilema took office in 2021, pledging to crack down on graft.

Despite its copper wealth, more than 64% of Zambia’s population lives in poverty, fueling public frustration over corruption.