LUSAKA (Reuters) – Debt servicing costs are putting pressure on Zambia’s central bank reserves, Bank of Zambia Governor Denny Kalyalya said during a monetary policy committee briefing on Wednesday, after announcing it would keep interest rates unchanged.

The International Monetary Fund has raised concerns over high levels of government debt in Africa’s second largest copper producer, and rejected the state’s borrowing plans last February, saying they risked making its debt load harder to sustain.

Reporting by Chris Mfula; writing by Emma Rumney; Editing by Alison Williams