A Kitwe based clergyman has urged the government to formulate pro-poor policies in view of the rising world food prices.Anglican priest Father Richard Luonde stated that developing countries like Zambia will be hit severely if stringent measures are not put in place to survive the negative effects of high world food prices.
Father Luonde in an interview with Flava Business News encourages government to come up with shops indirectly made for the poor where in the prices of commodities could be slightly lower as compared to others.
He says such a strategy could help developing countries cushion the impact of rising food prices.
Father Luonde noted however, that the problem with some African governments was their failure to listen to warnings of rising world food prices.
Rising food prices are tightening the squeeze on populations already struggling to buy adequate food, demanding radical reform of the global food system, Oxfam has warned.
By 2030, the average cost of key crops could increase by between 120% and 180%, the charity forecasts.
It is the acceleration of a trend which has already seen food prices double in the last 20 years.
Half of the rise to come will be caused by climate change, Oxfam predicts.
It calls on world leaders to improve regulation of food markets and invest in a global climate fund.
(Flavafm)