Expert calls for inclusive social cash transfer

Expert calls for inclusive social cash transfer
Written by Christopher Miti in Chipata
Tuesday, August 25, 2009 3:36:19 PM

UNITED Nations independent expert on Human Rights and Extreme Poverty, Magdalena Sepulveda on Saturday said the Social Cash Transfer Scheme that is being implemented by the Zambian government must be inserted in a more comprehensive social protection policy.

And Eastern Province permanent secretary Eularia Syamujaye said the scheme that is being implemented by the Department of Social Welfare has presented challenging experiences and lessons that have made the government scale up the programme.

In an interview after paying a courtesy call on Syamujaye on Saturday, Sepulveda said the social cash transfer scheme could not make people come out of poverty by itself.

“This programme, they are not very clear, they cannot work by themselves...we cannot see for example a social cash transfer programme that will make people come out of poverty by itself. This programme must be inserted in a more comprehensive social protection policy. So it is extremely important, for example, that there is, you know, free school education not only for primary education but also for secondary education. It is also crucial that the quality of education is good, so we need to train teachers. So the government must take action in order to train teachers to be able to provide quality education,” Sepulveda said.

She recommended that the scheme should be scaled up to make other vulnerable people capacitated.

“We are going to urge the government and the donor community to continue providing for this programme,” said Sepulveda. “We want to see that Zambia in the years to come children are educated and for children to come out of poverty, we need to support a family. Now we have no time to waste, it is important to provide assistance to them right now, today and tomorrow and continue to do so.”

Sepulveda is visiting Zambia with the intention of collecting first-hand information on the situation of people living in extreme poverty from a variety of stakeholders in the country.

And Syamujaye said the government had also seen socioeconomic transformation of beneficiaries of the scheme.

“Indicators have shown us that beneficiaries who were only able to have a meal or no meal at all are now able to have three meals in a day, while enrolment in school and retention have tremendously improved with some beneficiaries either investing in livestock or even shelter. We are aware of the growing debate on the arguments of social cash transfers affordability and political will. As government, we are live to the fact that developing countries and the international community are increasingly recognising the value of social cash transfers in achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGS),” said Syamujaye.

In Eastern Province, the social cash transfer programme is being piloted in Chipata and Katete districts.