Food poverty line shoots by over 130pct

THE Food Poverty Line (FPL) for one person shot by more than 130 percent during the month of June this year, whilst the Total Consumption Poverty Line (TCPL) shot up by more than 120 percent during the same month.

Statistics released by the Zimbabwe Statistics Agency (Zimstat) on Monday showed that the FPL as at June 2023 was $69 941.05 and the TCPL stood at $91 171.62 per person in June 2023. The FPL represents an increase of 132.3 percent over the May 2023 fi gure of $30 108.94.

“This means that an individual required that much to purchase both non-food and food items as at June 2023 in order not to be deemed poor. This represents an increase of 128.3 percent when compared to the April 2023 fi gure of $39 927.46,” said Zimstat.

The poverty datum lines vary by province as prices vary from place to place with differences explained by differences in average prices in the provinces. Zimstat also noted that the TCPL of $91 172.00 represents the total income needed for an individual (with all their income added together) as a minimum for them not to be deemed poor.

With effect from November 2020, Zimstat said it was now producing the Poverty Datum Lines (PDL) using the lower bound poverty line whose method refers to the sum of food poverty line and the average amount derived from non-food items of households whose total expenditure is equal to the food poverty line.

The FPL represents the amount of money that an individual will require to afford the minimum required daily energy intake of 2 100 calories. — New Ziana