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Mozambique: ‘Urgent action, not just words’ from state needed due to hike in fuel prices – federation
3:34 CAT | 29 Mar 2022
File photo: O País
The Mozambican Federation of Road Transport Carriers (Fematro) on Monday called for “urgent actions and not just words” from the government to avoid a general paralysis of public passenger transport due to the rise in fuel prices.
“The public transport sector needs urgent actions and not just words, because the activity is unsustainable,” the president of Fematro, Castigo Nhamane, told Lusa.
Nhamane was speaking about the recent multiplication of cases of public transport stoppage in some Mozambican cities, in protest against the latest rise in fuel prices in the country.
He said that many carriers were gradually “packing up” their vehicles because they were unable to afford the high costs of their activities.
“The transport crisis will worsen because there are carriers who are leaving the market: with the current costs we no longer have a business,” he said.
Castigo Nhamane ruled out, for now, the possibility of a fare increase on public transport, warning that a rise would be suffocating for passengers.
“For now, increasing fares is not an option, because we know the fragile economic situation” of the population, Nhamane noted.
The Fematro president stated that there is no decision by the organisation towards a general paralysis of activity, considering the cases in which some carriers refused to take passengers in protest against the rise in fuel prices as individual actions.
The relief of transport costs, he continued, requires urgent action from the Government, which includes a bonus on the sale price of spare parts, through special shops for passenger carriers.
The Mozambican Energy Regulatory Authority (Arene) on the 16th announced new fuel prices, pointing to the high cost of crude oil on the international market as the reason for the rise.
According to the new price list published by Arene, the price of a litre of gasoline rose from 69.94 meticals (0.99 euros) to 77.39 meticais (just over 1 euro), a litre of light oil rose from 47.95 meticais (0.68 euros) to 50.16 meticais (0.71 euros) and diesel went from 61.71 meticais (0.88 euros) to 70.97 meticais (just over 1 euro).
The kilo of cooking gas (LPG) went from 71,2 meticais (more than one euro) to 80,49 (1,1 euros) and natural gas for cars increased from 32,69 meticais (0,45 euros) to 37,09 meticais (0,52 euros).
Source: Lusa
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