– High food prices threat to development – Mwaanga

——-Choma town Mayor Professor Mwaanga  says the  rising prices on food remains a challenge that will likely have an impact on the country’s development.

Mr. Mwaanga says Zambia’s development path is threatened by rising cost of living coupled with high poverty levels, low human development and high unemployment levels, among others.

He said despite the many development programmes and projects initiated and implemented by various stakeholders since independence, the status of many Zambians has not changed significantly.

ZANIS reports that the Mayor said this during the official launch of the Jesuit Centre for Theological Reflection (JCTR) ‘s Urban Basic Needs Basket for Choma district, today.

According to a living conditions monitoring survey report by the central statistical office (CSO) of 2010 indicates that a marginal reduction in national poverty from 62.8 percent in 2006 to 60.5 percent in 2010.

To address this situation, government has initiated various plans such as the poverty reduction and strategy paper (PRSP), the Fifth National Development Plan (FNDP) and the recently revised Sixth National Development Plan (R-SNDP) 2013-2016.

These programmes are designed to improve the well fare of Zambians by enhancing affordability of basic needs.

The Basic Needs Baskets (BNB) is a monthly household survey that looks at what an average family size of five living in Choma requires monthly to lead a dignified life.