Consumers will continue to dig deep into their pockets as food prices continue to shoot up despite government intervention to stabilize prices on the market.
In a survey done by this website on Wednesday in main markets in Kigali indicated that prices of main foods used by households in the country recorded an increase by Rwf25 to Rwf150 in the past three months.
“You see, the money that I used to buy two kilos of Irish potatoes now buys only one and a quarter,” Josiane Mukesha, a mother of two said in Kicukiro market on Wednesday.
These impacts negatively on the consumer purchasing power, according to consumer rights experts which is also likely to affect their consumption and saving behaviors.
“This means that households have to forgo some foods in the basket which can be vital or decide to go away with savings,” said Job Opar, a consumer rights consultant while speaking to this website.
With fluctuating oil prices that saw the government bending down to increase public transport costs at the beginning of this month, there is a likelihood that food prices will continue to soar.
And despite government intervention to stabilize prices of foods along the value chain mainly maize, Irish potatoes, beans, cassava in the past three months, the prices have continued to go upwards.
Moreover, the rise in food prices has pushed up the country’s inflation to 3.7 percent in September, 2015 on account of increasing food and non alcoholic beverages despite an ease to 2.9 percent in October, 2015.
According to National Institute of statistics of Rwanda-NISR, inflation for the year on year inflation for “food and non- alcoholic beverages” and “housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels” on year on year basis reached 5.6 and 4.0 percent respectively in October 2015.
Source: Rwandaeye
UM– USEKE.RW
