depreciation of the Kwacha, therefore, entails an increase in the cost of inputs which are usually imported at high cost. During the period under review, significant increases in the price of fuel were noted, another occurrence that has a notable effect on the operations of news media. This is because news media rely on the use of motorised transport for their journalists to gather news on a daily basis. As such, inconsistent price of fuel (with an upward trend) could have a devastating effect on the cost of gathering news. JANUARY JUNE DIFFERENCE K19.84 K26.75 K7.35 Low Sulphur K18.93 K28.01 K9.08 Petrol Diesel Above: Fuel prices in February and June29 There was no instance of load shedding as noted in previous quarters, a positive trend that eased media operational costs as noted, also, in the fourth quarter, 2021 State of the Media Report. Previously, media houses had to rely on standby generators as well as alternative sources of electricity due to load management by the main power supplier, ZESCO. As noted by some discussants, however, improvement in some of the economic variables has still not translated into tangible benefits for the media sector, an issue of concern. Most respondents in the survey above described the economic environment in the period under review as “retrogressive” for media practitioners. It is for this reason, perhaps, that some discussants noted the following: Most institutions are failing to buy new equipment because had the economy been better, a lot of equipment would have been bought by both public and private media. The cost of equipment has gone up. Another discussant stated that: If there are two assignments for instance, one where they are providing transport and refunds and another government assignment without anything 29 As announced by the Energy Regulation Board. See https://www.erb.org.zm/newsroom 33