ECONOMIST Lubinda Haabazoka says as much as the Central Bank is trying to arrest the high inflation rate, increasing the Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) is merely penalising local businesses. On Wednesday, Bank of Zambia Governor Dr Denny Kalyalya disclosed that the Monetary Policy Rate Committee had decided to increase the MPR by 50 basis points to 14.5 per cent. In an interview, Thursday, Haabazoka noted that the inflation rate was on the rise because the country was not export oriented, which negatively affected the performance of the Kwacha on the exchange rate. “I think the Central Bank’s reason to raise the monetary policy rate by 50 basis points is probably aimed at fighting inflation. But we need to understand where...