By CHATULA KANGALI –

ABOUT 4,000 incapacitated families on the Copperbelt Province have so far benefited from the Social Cash Transfer Scheme.
The social transfer scheme is a programme that was rolled out by the Ministry of Community Development Mother and Child Health through the Social Welfare Department to help empower families as a way of reducing poverty levels in Zambia.
In this programme, incapacitated families from Ndola, Kitwe, Luanshya and Lufwanyama districts are entitled to a bi-monthly salary of K140 while identified families keeping members with disabilities are getting K280.
Provincial Social Welfare Officer Chrissy Hilweelwe said in an interview that 3,928 families from Ndola, Luanshya, Kitwe and Luanshya districts have so far been assisted by his department.
He said his department had so far spent about K3 million from the time the programme was rolled out on the province.
“3,928 incapacitated families on the Copperbelt have so benefited from the programme which is on-going. Government has so far spent of K2, 999,430 on bi-monthly salaries for all beneficiaries,” he said.
Mr Hilweele said the programme had changed the living standards of the beneficiaries as most of them had invested the money.
“We conducted a survey which proved that most families had started small business which is enabling them to have three meals a day and take their children to schools,” he said.
Mr Hilweele said the social cash transfer has also united broken families and allowed members with disabilities to be brought in the open.