Cost of living too high- ZFE

Zambia Federation of Employers Vice President Kennedy Njamba says the first quarter of the year 2022 which ended on 31st march was as bad as the last quarter of the year 2021 as the cost of living and that of doing business have been high in the country.

Mr. Njamba says the country witnessed some workers in certain entities resorting to illegal strike action during the first quarter of this year demanding increments in their salaries.

He says their outcry has been that their current salaries are not adequate to enable them to provide a decent living for their families.  

Mr. Njamba says since the cost of doing business in the country is still high, employers out there have been strategizing to find effective mechanisms of lowering the cost of production and bringing down the prices of goods and services which effectively could lead to a reduction in the high cost of living.

He has observed that there are certain costs that are beyond the control of employers such as the high cost of borrowing,  electricity tariffs and energy in general, and high exchange rates which raises the cost of imported raw materials in some businesses which have to be passed over to consumers thus raising the cost of living.