• Social Cash Transfer programme should migrate from the traditional cash transfer way to electronic platforms.
• This will cut a lot of transport costs and avoid ghost beneficiaries.
• Government has made tremendous strides regarding provision of social protection programmes.

Policy Monitoring and Research Centre (PMRC) has urged Government to migrate the Social Cash Transfer programmes from the traditional cash transfers to electronic platforms as a way of improving the provision of social protection programmes in the country.
Organization Executive Director Bernadette Zulu told Money FM News that electronic platforms have the potential to cut transport costs for officers, reduce leakages, and improve accessibility.
Mrs. Zulu added that migrating Social Cash Transfer programmes to electronic platforms can provide better security compared to physically delivering cash to fixed pay points.
“Moving forward, we would like government to migrate the Social Cash Transfer programme and other cash transfer programmes also from the traditional cash transfer way to the electronic platforms. That way, it will cut a lot of transport costs for officers to travel, and reduce leakages as well as avoid ghost beneficiaries also, especially the problem of ghost beneficiaries that should be dealt with immediately.”
“In improving livelihood, a lot of people take advantage of this safety net meant for the poor and so to mitigate that, it is important that even the Smart Zambia system is employed for this particular exercise,” Mrs. Zulu said.
She observed that Social protection plays a critical role in realizing human rights, reducing poverty and inequality, and supporting inclusive growth and Government has made tremendous strides regarding the provision of social protection programmes, in the country.
“We commend government for up-scaling the amount of beneficiaries under the Social Cash Transfer scheme. In the 2021 National Budget, K4.8 Billion was allocated to Social Protection programmes, which are critical in cushioning the negative impacts of poverty and vulnerability, more so with the COVID-19 pandemic, which made the already poor sections of society even more vulnerable.”
“In the 2021 National Budget, Government allocated K2.3 Billion towards the Social Cash Transfer programme which is the largest social safety net programme being implemented. Government increased targeted beneficiary households on the Social Cash Transfer from 700,000 to 994,000. Similarly, the transfer amount has been increased to reflect the inflationary adjusted amount from K90 to K110, which is paid bi-monthly, amounting to K220. Persons With Disabilities (PWDs) receive twice that amount which is K220, paid bi-monthly which amounts to K440,” she noted.
About 4.2 million people across the country are beneficiaries of various social protection programmes, which include the Social Cash Transfer, Food Security Pack, Emergency Cash Transfer, and Women’s Empowerment and Livelihood Support Program among others.