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Mitigate impact of global food prices, JCTR asks govt

Mitigate impact of global food prices, JCTR asks govt
By Kabanda Chulu and Joan Chirwa
Wednesday May 07, 2008 [04:00]

JESUIT CENTRE for Theological Reflection (JCTR) has challenged the government to take practical steps to mitigate the impact of the increasing global food prices on the Zambian situation. And Comesa senior agricultural advisor Dr Cris Muyunda has said rising prices of foodstuffs have affected affordability of basic commodities by many households.

Releasing the monthly findings of the basic needs food basket that has increased from the K683,700 for March to K742,700 for April, JCTR social conditions programme officer Miniva Chibuye yesterday challenged the government to use the needs basket as a basis for reflection and taking of pragmatic actions on the increasing food prices situation.

"The basic needs basket was constructed not to be a mere statistical exercise but as a tool for contributing to the understanding of the dynamics of living conditions of the people seen through cost of food and other essential needs," Chibuye stated. "We urge the government to use the basic needs basket as basis for reflection and subsequent pragmatic action in the on going debate on increasing global food prices and the extent to which this phenomenon might or is impacting on the Zambian situation, particularly on the impoverished."

She stated that there was need to address the rural and urban implications brought about by the increasing global food prices.

"Are the increasing food prices to the benefit of the rural populations? It is true and to observe that high urban food prices can be seen as a way for changing the long time development lopsidedness that has favoured urban populations and therefore driven rural-urban migration," Chibuye stated. "But one needs to recognise that there are preconditions to be met before rural populations benefit from increased urban food prices and such preconditions will include improved productive capacities for rural populations, through among others, irrigation schemes that will facilitate off-season crop production of these populations."

As compared to the cost of basic food for March, which stood at K683,700, the cost of basic food in April increased to K742, 00, representing an increase of K59,000.
In January basic food increased by K26,500, in February by K58,750, March K28,950 and now by K59,000.

If the cost of non-food essentials such as charcoal, bath and washing soap is included, the total figure stands at K1,197,100.
And Dr Muyunda said the regional bloc was deeply concerned with rising prices of foodstuffs in Zambia and other countries.

"The potential impacts of rising prices of food are quite many. For example, most of the incomes in Zambia are spent on food and in the near future, a lot of people will not afford to buy food because of the rising prices of commodities," said Dr Muyunda during the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Comesa and Eastern African Farmers Federation (EAFF) in Lusaka on Monday. "We are also concerned about the potential impact on malnutrition. Already, the situation on malnutrition is not good. Of the 800 million population in Africa, about 200 million are malnourished and this figure is likely to increase because of the current situation."

The partnership between Comesa and EAFF is aimed at enhancing agricultural production and marketing in Comesa member countries.

And EAFF president Philip Kiriro said the importation of agricultural commodities would soon become impossible resulting from the current global deficits and rising prices of commodities.

Kiriro said countries producing less food would have serious problems in importing agricultural products.

Labels: FOOD, INFLATION, JCTR, MINIVA CHIBUYE

posted by MrK @ 6:04 AM