Fri, 14 Apr 2017 11:20:33 +0000 By SANDRA MACHIMA THE interests of the poor should guide the final decision on proposed electricity tariff hike by the power utility company, Jesuit Centre for Theological Reflection (JCTR) media and information officer Tendai Posiana has said. Ms Posiana said ZESCO’s migration to cost reflective tariffs would unarguably cut down Government electricity subsidies and reduce Zambia’s budget deficit. She said it was estimated by the World Bank that the electricity subsidy costs Zambia on average US$26 million a month since September 2015, saying that was a huge burden on government coffers. However, JCTR cautioned that an increase within the six month period as currently being proposed may strain the poor indirectly as well as make Zambia’s business environment unfavourable by raising the cost of doing business. Ms Posiana said JCTR proposed that the initial increment be reduced from 50 percent to at most 40percent and that the tariff hike […]
