by about 5. 0 percent to us $ 21 billion. this was due to the fall in the stock of foreign direct investment ( fdi ) owing to valuation effects on equity mostly held by the mining and quarrying sector. nonetheless, fdi continued to account for the largest share of the stock of private sector foreign liabilities. private sector external debt, which accounted for about 80 percent of foreign liabilities, increased by 5 percent to us $ 17 billion due to revaluation changes in non - us dollar denominated loans predominantly in the electricity, manufacturing, information and communication as well as real estate sectors. esteemed invited guests, in terms of flows, overall net foreign liability outflows of us $ 74 million 1 / 3 bis central bankers'speeches were recorded in 2020 against net inflows of us $ 357 million in 2019. this was due to loan repayments to non - affiliates by the mining, manufacturing, electricity as well as wholesale and retail trade sectors, and the reduction in currency holdings by non - residents in domestic deposittaking corporations. however, fdi liability inflows amounted to us $ 200 million compared to us $ 860 million in 2019. reduced re - invested earnings and debt repayments, largely by the mining and quarrying sector, accounted for the decline in fdi inflows. canada continued to be the major source of private sector foreign liabilities. ladies and gentlemen, the stock of private sector foreign liabilities declined further in the first half of 2021 to us $ 20 billion due to loan repayments mostly by the mining and quarrying sector as well as revaluation effects on equity. however, a net inflow of about us $ 600 million was recorded against net outflows of us $ 295 million a year ago. this was due to the upswing in fdi inflows on account of higher reinvested earnings by the mining, deposit - taking corporation, manufacturing, electricity, as well as information and communication sectors. distinguished ladies and gentlemen, another major finding from the survey is that the stock of private sector foreign assets rose by 16 percent to us $ 3. 0 billion in 2020 mainly due to the increase in currency and deposits by the mining and deposit - taking corporations. the surge in the holdings of currency and deposits contributed significantly to the increase in foreign asset flows by 60 percent to us $ 700 million. however, fdi asset acquisitions slumped to us $ 63 million in 2020 from us $ 624 million in 2019 owing

take deliberate policies and long - term commitment from all stakeholders beyond the study for us to ensure financial inclusion of women. it will further require constant review of the policies, re - assessment of priorities, and adequate financial resources to effectively implement interventions to promote women ’ s access to finance. this entails integration of gender - specific perspectives at the design stage of policies and programmes to provide for inclusion of clauses more equitable access to financial assets and services by women. in the past few decades, the state of the financial sector in zambia has been characterised by low financial intermediation that witnessed limited access to financial services particularly for the rural population and the low - to - middle income earners, high cost of funds and underdeveloped money and capital markets. however, the improvement in the macroeconomic environment and positive economic growth has resulted in great strides in the development of the financial services and financial sector in general. the government of the republic of zambia through the ministry of finance and bank of zambia has been putting in place measures to maintain a stable macroeconomic environment which have resulted in low inflation and a decline in interest rates in recent years. except for the volatility of the kwacha exchange rate against other currencies experienced in recent months, the exchange rate has been fairly stable over the years. we remain confident that the economy is on a robust footing and the end year inflation target of 6. 5 per cent is attainable. the bank of zambia will continue to be vigilant and take appropriate measures to support the stability in the macroeconomic environment. bis central bankers ’ speeches ladies and gentlemen, the strong economic performance has culminated in growth in both the number of financial services providers and the financial products in the country. however, the level of financial inclusion still needs to be broadened further. the evidence from the finscope demand surveys revealed that as at 2009 only 37 per cent of the adult zambian population was financially included. this signified a 3. 6 per cent marginal increase from 33. 7 per cent in the 2005 survey. the finscope study further revealed that access to finance for women was relatively poor in relation to their male counterparts. this study being presented today is, therefore, a welcome opportunity to reflect on the progress since 2009. financial institutions have a role to play in ensuring financial services and products are available at reasonable terms, including fair and practical know your customer ( kyc ) assessments, the use of alternative collateral and flexible lines of credit to mention, but a few