| Home | Press Releases |Novermber 6, 2005 | |||
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MONTHLY COST OF FOOD ALONE AT K506,150: IS THE GAIN IN THE VALUE OF THE KWACHA HELPING THE PEOPLE?December 2005 Economic performance must be judged on the basis of the positive impacts experienced by the people, more so by those that are living on the margins of sustenance, observes the Jesuit Centre for Theological Reflection (JCTR). Currently, there is so much speculation about the reasons to explain the gain in value of the Kwacha in relation to the United States Dollar. But one key element in guiding this discussion of the Kwacha-US Dollar relationship concerns the beneficial outcome to the people. While it may be true that effects of positive economic policy take some time to be felt by the ordinary people, it is also imperative that we realise that the depth of suffering by the people has been too significant, prolonged and in many ways spread very unevenly between rural and urban locations. Development approaches in Zambia have been unduly oriented to urban areas more than to rural areas. The attention given to rural areas in terms of agriculture has not been matched by meeting the cry of the majority rural people for road infrastructure, health and education facilities, livelihood opportunities, etc. If the strengthening of the Kwacha against the dollar is considered as a meaningful indication, not only for itself but as a sign of how the larger economy is improving, as some observers have put it, then there is cause for greater optimism about the future by the Zambian people. However, the fact that the strengthening of the Kwacha has not had any perceivable relationship to the reduction of key production ingredients such as fuel means that this phenomenon is meaningful only for itself. Shouldn’t we have had by now some price reduction of petroleum products taking effect at “midnight” as the case has always been when the Kwacha loses its strength? Certainly a reduction in the cost of fuel will influence the cost of other items such as food and essential non-food items. Again, if the strengthening of the Kwacha has been meaningful not only for itself but as a sign of how the larger economy is improving people’s lives, shouldn’t this phenomenon be reflected in the cost of meeting basic needs? According to the JCTR Basic Needs Basket that measures cost of food and essential non-food items for a family of six, the cost of food alone in Lusaka amounted to K506,150 at end of November 2005. This figure represents a slight reduction of K2,910 in the overall cost of food from the cost of K509,060 in October. Some increases were recorded in the prices of mealie meal, green vegetables and milk, while decreases were registered in the prices of beans and meat. Other food items like kapenta, dry fish, cooking oil remained same. One important point to note is that the increase in the price of mealie meal hurts the majority poor people. But also small decreases in the price of some commodities and stability in others is not enough to impact positively on the lives of the people. There is need for some significant and consistent reductions to benefit households. There is one important lesson to draw from the current situation: The need to have an objective and clear way of measuring economic performance and ultimately development by seeing what is truly happening in people’s lives. If the economy is improving, it must be reflected in the ability of the people to have access to basic needs. That is how true development should be seen and measured. For now, whatever the reasons for the appreciation of the Kwacha are or may be, one issue remains clear: we still have a lot of work to do in Zambia to improve people’s lives. |
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