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The Mozambican government’s National Inspectorate of Economic Activities (INAE) has announced that it is working to ensure that the price of bread does not rise on 1 April, as threatened by the National Association of Mozambican Bakers (AMOPAO).
Cited by the independent television station STV, the INAE General Inspector, Rita Freitas, guaranteed that the government is working to ensure that the increase does not happen, and she accused the bakers of behaving in a “precipitate” manner.
The call for a price rise first came from bakers in the northern city of Nampula, but was quickly echoed by AMOPAO.
Freitas accused the bakers of spreading “false news”, and promised there would be no change in the bread price.
“I think people are attentive and know this isn’t going to happen”, she said. “On 1 April, there will be no rise in the price of bread”.
The bakers argue that a price rise is justified, because of the increase in the costs of production, particularly of their main raw material, wheat flour.
Freitas said that INAE is working with all the interested parties, including AMOPAO and the milling companies, through the Ministry of Industry and Trade “to analyse the whole process of producing wheat flour and bread”.
She promised to inform the public of the outcome “in due time”.
But there is no painless solution. AMOPAO says the price of flour has risen sharply, with a 50 kilo sack of flour now costing 2,100 meticais (about 29 US dollars at current exchange rates), instead of 1,650 meticais.
The bakers argue that, if they are not allowed to put up their prices, then the government must subsidise wheat flour.
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