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No, Zambia’s inflation rate in August 2021 was not at 31.6% as purported by the Presidential Press Aide but stood at 24.4%.

False

Statistical data consulted from the Zambia Statistics Agency Vol 221 of 2021, August monthly inflation update indicate that the annual inflation rate for August 2021 was at 24.4%, and not 31.6%.

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Verified May, 10 2022

Claim

On 1st April 2022, Special Assistant to the President for Press and Public Relations, Mr. Anthony Bwalya posted a claim on his official Facebook page alleging that in August 2021, Zambia’s inflation rate stood at 31.6%. Mr. Bwalya asserted that as of 1st April 2022, the inflation rate stood at 13.1%, which was 59% slower than August 2021.

Rating Justification

The fact checking process has determined as false, the claim by the Special Assistant to the President for Press and Public Relations, Mr. Anthony Bwalya, that Zambia’s inflation rate stood at 31.6% in August 2021. According to the Zambia Statistics Agency Vol 221 of 2021, August monthly inflation update consulted by iVerify, the Consumer Price Index indicated that the annual inflation rate for the month of August 2021 was at 24.4%, a decrease from 24.6% recorded in the previous month of July 2021. Contrary to Bwalya’s assertions that Zambia’s inflation rate stood at 31.6% in August 2021, statistics obtained by iVerify from Zambia Statistical Agency indicate that Zambia’s inflation rate stood at 24.4% in the month of August 2021. Therefore, the claim by the Special Assistant to the President for Press and Public Relations, Anthony Bwalya, that Zambia’s inflation rate stood at 31.6% in August 2021, is false.

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