Sustainable Agricultural Practices and Adaptation to Climate Change

Zambia is endowed with a lot of natural resources and has been one of the major producers of copper and other minerals such as cobalt and emeralds. The country has large tracts of fertile arable land, which is suitable for agriculture. In the past five years, agriculture has been identified as one of the key sectors that could drive Zambia's economy

Basic Needs Basket (BNB) for February 2019: Lifting of Mealie Meal Export Ban to Impact Negatively on the Poor

The JCTR’s February, 2019 Basic Needs Basket (BNB) for a family of five in Lusaka stood at K 5,331 which was K64 less than the January BNB which stood at K 5,395.35. The most significant changes were noted in fish which increased by K9 from K131 in January to K140 in February per kg due to the fish ban. Mealie meal increased by K3 from K83 in January to K86 in February per 25Kg. Kapenta reduced by K23 from K202 in January to K179 in February per kg. Beans reduced by K5 from K27 in January to K22 in February per Kg. Despite the high cost of living as shown by the basic needs basket, in the recent past Government through the Minister of Agriculture, Mr. Katambo, lifted the ban on the export of mealie meal. The Export ban on mealie meal was passed to stabilize domestic food prices and ensure domestic food security. Export bans are widely used globally, regionally and in Zambia to protect domestic markets and citizens amidst uncertainties in supply or demand of basic commodities or services. Apart from ensuring that domestic producers and suppliers are well protected, export ban warrants that strategic reserves are maintained. The lifting of the ban might contribute positively to Zambia’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and the Balance of Payments (BoPs) through increased foreign earnings from export revenues

30NGWEE TAX, TARIFF OR LEVY ON INTERNET CALLS

This statement was released after the announcement by the then Minister of information in Zambia about the introduction of a tarrif or tax on internet calls. The statement talks about of the Ministry of finance revisiting the tax regime and clarifying the tax system in which the internet tax will be used.There had be an uproar regarding the government's decision to introduce a levy on internet calls. This has been after the Minister of Information and Broadcasting Services, who is also the chief government’s spokesperson, Ms Dora Siliya, announce that government had introduced a 30ngwee charge a day on internet calls. According to government, this introduction was in a bid to save jobs in telecommunication companies like MTN, Airtel, Zamtel that are under threat from internet telephone calls. This, however, has not been received well by the citizens with many accusing the government of attempting to stifle freedom of expression and access to information amidst lack of Access to Information Law. Nonetheless, clarity is required in terms of showing a system in which the 30ngwee levy will be used to save mobile telecommunication companies like Zamtel, Airtel and MTN who already charge users for airtime and data usage. It would be very sad to see a well-intended levy diverted to unclear ends

Implementation of Select Health Projects at Livingstone Central Hospital

Enjoyment of the right to health is still a concern in Zambia and falls below that required for the people to fully enjoy that right and other related rights such as the right to right. Therefore, the projects of building the laboratory, the eye clinic, the dental clinic and the wall fence at Livingstone Central hospital aimed at enhancing access to health in Livingstone by the local people interested the Livingstone JCTR Outreach team. The said structures were meant to be modern facilities that would house all necessary equipment and would provide a wider range of services to three quarters of the population of southern province. This would drastically reduce referrals of patients to the University Teaching Hospital (UTH) in Lusaka.Over the years, the Jesuit Centre for Theological Reflection (JCTR) has monitored the use of public financial resources in an effort to foster accountability by public officers. Some works have included analysing issues raised in the Auditor General reports over the year and advocating action on culprits. Hence, undertaking of the social audit by the JCTR Livingstone outreach team to measure among areas, progress on projects and the quality of works. Monitoring of the projects was implemented over a period of 12 months, November 2017 through to November 2018

JCTR Bulletin 4th Quarter 2016

In the last issue we acknowledge the violence in the August general elections. Zambia has continued to experience pockets of post-election political violence amongst supporters of different political parties. In some cases,intra-party political violence has continued, rendering ordinary citizens physically and emotionally marred. The Jesuit Centre For Theological Reflection (JCTR) takes cognisance of the church’s role in reconciling and reminding the citizenry that violence is not the way to solve problems. JCTR held an Ecumenical Theological Reflection Day last October under the theme: “The role of the church and citizens in reconciling the nation”. In her article on the Ecumenical Theological Reflection day, Dominica Kabale reports that the lack of initiative to build peace amongst political actors has had a negative influence on young voters in Universities and Colleges. She reveals that it is shocking that college students have taken a leaf from happenings in national elections by refusing to accept student body election results. Some of these students have resorted to mobilising resources to petition college election results

Basic Needs Basket (BNB) for April 2018

Basic Needs Basket (BNB) for April 2018. This item contains the data for the following towns: - Chinsali, Chipata, Choma, Kabwe, Kasama, Kitwe, Livingstone, Luanshya, Lusaka, Mansa, Mongu, Monze, Mpika, Ndola and Solwezi

Continued Increase in Public Funds Abuse/Waste worrying

Zambia has many developmental challenges to continue on the path of wasteful use of public resources. In the last few years, government has struggled to balance its incomes with expenditure partly due to reduced economic growth which has been caused by reduced copper prices on the international market and low electricity supply among others. This has resulted in government recording huge budget deficits of over 6% of GDP per annum way above the projected annual deficit of 3% of GDP. Government has thus been courting the IMF for a US$1.3 billion for balance of payment support. While the economy has shown signs of recovery with projected growth of 4% for 2017 from 3.4% of 2016, government fiscal space is still under serious strain. Seeing that we are on a route to economic recovery stringent public financial management policies should be instituted in our country to ensure that funds are used for the intended purpose in order to uplift lives of the poor.The office of the auditor general on 2nd November, 2017, released a report on the Accounts of the Republic for the financial year ending 31st December 2016. The Jesuit centre for theological reflection is concerned with the current public financial mismanagement in Zambia which keeps getting worse every year without corrective measures. While seven out of twelve categories of irregularities showed some reduction, irregularity such as untouched expenditure remained the highest ranking irregularity at K170 million, an amount that could have doubled 2018 budgetary allocation to Skills Development and enabled hundreds of young school leavers acquire some skill

A STUDY ON FRAMEWORKS AND POLICIES FOR GOVERNANCE IN THE MINING SECTOR IN ZAMBIA

The study on governing frameworks in the mining sector will inform stakeholders on the current regulations and policies in place in the sector as well as the levels of respect for human rights for workers that can inform future interventions of the JCTR and partners in the sector.Most of Zambia’s large-scale copper mines are located on the Copperbelt Province and North- Western Province. Zambia like all states has an obligation to respect human rights and fundamental freedoms as enshrined in the international conventions and instruments that the country has signed and ratified such as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. In addition, the mining companies adhere to various international conventions and practices under the auspices of international organisations such as International Labour Organisation (ILO) and United Nations (UN). These include the UN Global Compact Initiative, ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work and the ILO Tripartite Declaration of Principles concerning Multinational Enterprises and Social Policy.Norwegian Church Aid; Act Allianc

Understanding the usage of Constituency Development Fund (CDF) in Zambia: The Case of Education, Health, Water and Sanitation Projects in Chishipula, Kapulanga, Chamboli and Simoonga Communities

The main objective of this Study was to establish how CDF is accessed and used in community projects in the areas of education, health and water and sanitation. The Study also paid attention to the allocation of CDF to these areas, the challenges encountered by local communities to access and benefiting from social services, the disbursement patterns of CDF by Government as well as the disparities in the allocation of CDF to social projects.In Zambia, the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) was introduced in 1995 as “instrument” to facilitate the deliverance of public developmental goods and services directly to local communities. Despite the introduction of the Fund, the provision of and access to basic essential public services by local communities has remained poor in Zambia It is in this regard that the Jesuit Centre for Theological Reflection (JCTR) commissioned a study on “Understanding the Usage of Constituency Development Fund (CDF) in Zambia: The Case of Education, Health, Water and Sanitation Projects,” in February 2019 in a bid to enhance the performance of CDF