• The cost of living as analyzed by JCTR will continue taking a downward trend.
• Despite the reduction being minimal, it has to be celebrated.
• CSO-SUN hopes that the new dawn administration can see to it that they work towards reducing this.

Civil Society Scaling Up Nutrition (CSO-SUN) Alliance has called on government to put in place strategies that will see a further reduction in the basic needs and nutrition basket even close to K5, 000.
Speaking in an interview with Money FM News, Organization Country Coordinator Mathews Mhuru said government must work towards reducing the huge amount of money that a family of five in Lusaka has to spend on their basic needs and decent meals.
Mr. Mhuru however noted with happiness the K85 reduction in the cost of living as well as basic needs and nutrition basket as revealed by Jesuit Centre for Theological Reflection (JCTR).
He said the analysis by JCTR entails that the cost of living will continue taking a downward trend so that life becomes much easier for low income households.
“We have noticed the positive reduction of the cost of living in Lusaka, as revealed by the JCTR. We are happy that this is the situation and that the cost of living and the basic needs and nutrition basket as analyzed by JCTR will continue taking a downward trend so that life becomes much easier for ordinary Zambians.”
“But we hope that the new dawn administration can see to it that they work towards reducing this huge amount of money that a family of five in Lusaka has to spend for them to survive, to have their basic needs as well as decent meals. We hope that there will be strategies that will be put in place by the new dawn administration to work on this and see a further reduction to somewhere even close to K5, 000 because looking at the earnings of people, this is really what they need to spend,” Mr. Mhuru said.
He stated that despite the reduction being minimal, it has to be celebrated becomes it is a very good way to go for the country unlike having an increase in food prices on a monthly basis.
“One of the things we have also noticed is that despite the reduction being small, I think it becomes a very good way to go for a country rather than having a situation on a monthly basis where you are seeing an increase, so even this reduction should be celebrated,” he stated.
On Monday, JCTR disclosed that the cost of living for a family of five in Lusaka as measured by the Basic Needs and Nutrition Basket reduced b7 K85 to K9, 326 in April 2022 from K9, 411 recorded in March, 2022.
JCTR Social and Economic Development Programmes Manager Chama Bowa Mundia attributed the downward movement in the basket to reduced prices of items such as 16kg of bananas, 14kg of other fruits and 1Kg soya pieces.