Mining lay-offs affect Lubumbashi food security

The dismissal of some 6,000 employees of the mining company Gecamines in Lubumbashi, Katanga province, has affected the general food security situation in the city, an FAO report said. The report, received by IRIN on Monday, said that in addition to the lay-offs, the salaries of many other Gecamines employees remained unpaid and the provision of food as partial payment had also been suspended. Meanwhile, recent government-imposed monetary restrictions had reduced the capacity of importers to bring in products from southern Africa, while the food-supplying northern part of the province remained inaccessible, the report added. The presence of displaced persons in the city has put further pressure on the resources of local families, it said.