BUJUMBURA November 23rd (ABP) – Consumers living in Bujumbura Town Hall are worried about the excessive rise in the prices of foodstuffs and items most used for cooking, we learned during a visit that the ABP carried out at the central market commonly called Cotebu located in the Ngagara zone of the urban commune of Ntahangwa. During that visit, it was found that the prices of foodstuffs such as palm oil, soaps, rice and some ingredients are bought at exorbitant prices. Unrefined palm oil can be purchased between 5,000 and 19,000 BIF depending on the amount desired by the consumer. A 1.5-liter bottle is sold at 5,000 francs from our francs while a five-liter can is sold between 18,000 and 19,000 BIF. In the case of refined palm oil commonly known as cooki, a bottle containing 5 liters is bought at 38,000 BIF while a bottle with the capacity of a 1.5 is sold at 11,000 or even 12,000 of our francs. The so-called cotton oil commonly known as golden 5 liters is bought at 45,000 BIF while 3 liters of the same product is sold at 20,000 BIF. When it comes to soap, even the merchants of this article accept that the price of soap is rising at an alarming rate. A six pack of soaps that used to be 2000 BIF is currently sold for 2400 and the worst thing is that the dimensions of those soaps have been reduced. Soap that we used to buy for 500 BIF is bought for 700 BIF. The price of rice varies between 2200 and 2800 BIF depending on the preferred quality. What consumers and sellers say is that rice is bought at a high price compared to other years. In the case of ingredients, the case of mayonnaise is more touching. The curino-type mayonnaise is sold at 10,000 BIF and that of the everyday brand is sold at 8,000 BIF. The price of beans varies between 1300 and 1800 BIF depending on the quality while the price of corn varies between 1300 and 1500 BIF.
According to consumers, the price of other ingredients has not gone up like mayonnaise. They claim that if nothing changes, the price of onions is sometimes variable between 1500 and 2000 BIF and consumers are used to that phenomenon.
Regarding the reasons for the exorbitant rise in household basket prices, the traders contacted reported that they were not aware of the cause of that phenomenon. They only say that the price situation is alarming compared to last year during that same period.
Consumers are asking the government to look for the reasons for the rise in prices in order to contain the situation as civil servants’ salaries are not being revised upwards. In this period that the Burundian population is recommended to wash their hands as many times as possible to prevent the spread of coronavirus, they are asking the government to review the price of soap so that all Burundians have access to soap.