ONE person requires $95,06 per month for food and non-food items to escape being deemed poor, which is down from $95,42, a new report has shown, despite the cost of living still being significantly high.
In a poverty datum report for September, the Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency (ZimStat) said the $95,06 represented the total consumption poverty line (TCPL) for food and non-food items, which was 0,38% from the month of August.
Findings from the ZimStat report showed that the majority of Zimbabweans were still surviving on $1 a day for food, meaning, people were having an average of one meal per a day.
Analysts say the figure for food and non-food items was owing to the lack of disposable income, thus, causing prices to remain the same and budget lower.
Economist, Prosper Chitambara said people must not take the TCPL threshold as a sign of a cheaper quality of living.
“The cost of living remains very high even though our inflation has been negative, in actual fact, it is a paradox. What it actually means is prices have been increasing at a slower pace, but again, the cost of basic commodities in Zimbabwe remains relatively higher compared to our neighbouring countries,” he said.
“It (TCPL) is also due to the lack of aggregate demand in the economy from cash shortages and company closures. These figures are also based on a per capita basis.”
He said the TCPL represented the barest minimum a person would require to survive.
–Newsday