Wonderful, as the price of kerosene continues to bite in the country

KEROSENE oil users in the country continues to feel the pinch of the high price selling commodity which has gone up by 65 percent for the last 12 months consecutively from Tsh. 1,070 for a litre to currently Tsh. 1,970. The survey by Business Times can establish. Kerosene oil which currently is sold at a higher price than petrol by 0.5 percent, is a commodity which is used by most rural Tanzanians who hardly have access to the supply of electricity in their domicile. Statistics by National Power Utility firm (TANESCO) shows that electricity supply in rural Tanzanian communities covers only 2 percent. The rest of 98 percent of rural dwellers in the country remains without electricity supply and instead resort to the use of kerosene oil. Kereosene oil is currently fetched at Tsh. 1,958 a littre as per the previous bi-weekly indicative price tags issued by Energy ad Water Utility Regulatory Authority (EWURA). The commodity was reduced from Tsh. 2,035 a littre as it was being sold a fortnight ago. Despite of this decrease in price, still kerosene oil is sold slightly higher than petrol a driving oil for motor vehicles which currently is fetched at Ts. 1,880. According to EWURA's indicative oil price tags, Kerosene oil has been sold slightly higher than petrol since early November this year. In 1970, over four decades ago, the price of a twenty littre full of a tin of kerosene was sold at Tsh. 21 only, recalls mzee Zablon Megwe (76), now a retired prisons officer. He says by then kerosene was being sold in special packed tins carrying 20 litres which nowadays these are not seen in petrol stations. Added that, the retail prices for the commodity could be sold by shopkeepers running a retail shop in special locally made measurements known as 'Kibaba'. He told the writer of this blog in an exclusive interview early this week in Dar es Salaam that, he could manage to survive with the little salary he earned of Tsh. 620 per month as a prison officer, that could cater for other household needs for the whole month. Now as a retired civil servant conducting his life in rural village where the majority of Tanzanians lives, hardly he can make his budget through if he dares to buy a 20 littre of kerosene for his home consumption and pays Tsh. 40,000. He says, the money is almost equivalent in total to the amount paid for his monthly pension as a government retiree, and which are due paid in total for six months amounting to Tsh. 240,000, the money being paid to him as a lumpsum.

An oil price tag at one of the petrol stations in Dar es Salaam indicating how Kerosene price is higher than petrol (supper). Oil prices in up-country regions are more worse that the currently selling price in Dar es Salaam city. To the great surprise, many rural Tanzanians wonders as to why the price of kerosene oil is up than that of a petrol? It has never occurred for the price of kerosene to go up in global market or sold much higher than petrol ever since Tanzania attained its independence 50 years ago.


He wonders how inflation has affected Tanzania's economy. Statistics by the Central Bank of Tanzania (BOT) shows that, in between 1970 and the last quarter of the country' financial trading period of 1972, one US Dollar was equivalent to Tsh. 16.7. Whereas one British Pound was equivalent to Tsh. 20. Economists says that, the gradual dropping of a shilling against dollar in the market has been hastened by the habit of transacting US Dollar in purchasing the commodity while abandoning the use of shilling from circulation, an aspect that causes gradual depreciation of a shilling. It is now very common in newspaper headlines about the impact of rise in oil price and the depreciation of Tanzanian shilling. As a result now pockets gets the pinch as the rise of oil prices has made many Tanzanians come across another word 'inflation' decreasing the buying power of money. World statistics shows that, it would be interesting to note that in the year 1999, the price per crude oil barrel was US Dollar 16 which rose to more than US Dollar 100 in the year 2008.

Other previous prices as indicated in their price tags at a petrol station.

This is an increase of more than 600 percent Reasons for oil rise is cited due to weak US Dollar which has an indirect impact, but since oil is priced in dollars, and as the value of dollars falls, the price of oil in dollars goes up. Over the last five years, the dollar has fallen by 33 percent against Euro. If that keeps up, the upward pressure on oil prices will remain. As the issue of oil in the country is tracking unavoidable circumstances, some members of Parliament could not hesitate to make a comment when cornered by the writer of this news. An MP for Ubungo constituency Hon. John Mnyika under CHADEMA ticket suggested that, in order to reduce the high rise price on oil products, the government should reduce tax on imported crude oil. John Nyika is on the view of the fact that, the move will be a relief to oil traders in the country who would willfully reduce the prices so that small users of this commodity especially rural people would get a relief on the purchase of the product. An MP for South Muleba constituency under CCM, ticket Charles Mwijage who is also a member of parliamentary committee on Energy and Water, has requested EWURA not to arrange the price tag for oil dealers in the country and instead he wanted EWURA to introduce a starting price for oil and not to direct indicative prices as it does now.