By MILDRED KATONGO –
MORE than 600 people living with disabilities in Luanshya have benefited from the Social Cash Transfer (SCT) scheme this year.
Luanshya District social welfare officer, Sara Mwila said the department had prioritised giving SCT to people living with disabilities before reaching other vulnerable people in society.
Ms Mwila said this in Luanshya when Community Development and Social Welfare Minister Emerine Kabanshi paid a courtesy call on Luanshya District Commissioner Harold Mbaulu recently.
She said the department has also devised a system to assess people who were eligible to access the SCT.
“In Luanshya and part of Masaiti districts, we have 625 beneficiaries and these are all living with disabilities. We have prioritised the disabled before assessing other vulnerable people in society,” she said.
Ms Mwila said the target for the district was to have about 1,500 beneficiaries although this had not been achieved.
She said many people who were assessed to be part of the SCT programme could not pass the tests as they were found not to be eligible.
Ms Mwila said the department did not give the SCT to everyone but used a method where people could be assessed if they were eligible or not.
She, however, said that there was need for more resources to ensure that people from far-flung areas were catered for.
Ms Mwila said this would help to have an inclusive programme aimed at distributing the funds equally as many people who were more vulnerable were found in the rural parts of the town.