1.5 Million Households to Benefit from Social Cash Transfer Expansion
Government has completed the scale-up of the Social Cash Transfer Programme (SCT), expanding coverage from 1.3 million to 1,555,840 vulnerable households nationwide.
Announcing the development during a press briefing at the ministerial conference on Thursday morning, Doreen Mwamba, Minister of Community Development and Social Services, said the expansion exceeded the initial target of enrolling 250,000 additional households, with more than 300,000 brought on board following an extensive sensitisation campaign conducted across all 116 districts.
Ms Mwamba described the SCT as one of Government’s most critical social protection interventions, designed to cushion poor and vulnerable citizens against the harsh effects of extreme poverty.
She said the programme goes beyond income support by restoring dignity to elderly citizens, protecting children from hunger, supporting persons with disabilities and offering hope to households facing severe socio-economic hardship.
The Minister said enrolment was conducted using scientifically developed poverty-targeting parameters aligned with the Zambia Statistics Agency poverty profiling framework.
She added that Proxy Means Testing was applied to assess poverty levels and ensure the process was fair, transparent and free from political influence or favouritism.
Ms Mwamba further announced that payments for the January–February cycle would commence on Friday, 20 February 2026, and run for four weeks. “The payments will reach over 1.5 million households, including approximately 305,000 newly enrolled beneficiaries,” she said.
The payment cycle also includes 23,000 households participating in the SCT Nutrition-Sensitive Pilot Programme in Kawambwa, Monze, Mumbwa and Chibombo districts. The pilot integrates poverty reduction with child nutrition interventions, recognising the strong link between nutrition and long-term productivity.
The Minister said additional deserving households would be progressively enrolled in line with the revised SCT Guidelines. She encouraged beneficiaries to use the funds prudently to improve household food security, invest in small-scale income-generating activities and participate in community savings groups.
