July 2001 Basic Needs and Nutrition Basket: Cost of JCTR Food Basket Records Slight Increase

It is in the light of the rising cost of living that JCTR acknowledges the settlement of the wage dispute in the country and the importance of the recently released money to pay council workers' arrears by government.The Jesuit Centre for Theological Reflection (JCTR) Food Basket for a family of six in Lusaka for the month of July stands at K332,520. This is up by K3,950 from the June figure of K328,570. However, it must be pointed out that this. cost is mainly for food. It excludes other essential items such as housing, electricity, water, transport, clothing, etc. Muweme Muweme, Coordinator of the Economic and Social Development Project of the JCTR, observes that ''The overall cost of the Food Basket can be influenced even by the rise in select or individual items composing it.'' The current rise in cost of Food Basket can be largely attributed to the price of mealie meal which has increased recently. This implies that the cost of living still continues to rise.Irish Aid and Joint Country Programm