Ukraine invasion could lead to higher fuel and bread prices, warns Mozambican government – AIM

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Ukraine invasion could lead to higher fuel and bread prices, warns Mozambican government – AIM

10:39 CAT | 04 Mar 2022

File photo: Lusa

The Mozambican government warned on Wednesday that the Russian invasion of Ukraine could lead to rises in the prices of fuel and of wheat – and hence of bread.

The government spokesperson, the Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade, Ludovina Bernardo, speaking to reporters at the end of a meeting of the Council of Ministers (Cabinet), said that no country could be an island in relation to what was happening in the rest of the world.

“Obviously the war has an impact on the price of bread”, she said. “It could also impact on the price of fuel, and on the prices of other products, particularly those which use raw materials imported from those countries (Russia and Ukraine), which are major producers”.

(Between them, Russia and Ukraine account for about 30 per cent of the world’s wheat supplies, and so any disruption is likely to push up the world market price of wheat. Russia is one of the countries from which Mozambique imports its wheat. Very little wheat is grown in Mozambique).

Bernardo promised that, within a matter of days, the government will announce measures to mitigate the impact of the war on Mozambique.

But, in reality, there is not much that the government can do. The only alternative to price rises is a government subsidy, and the government has already made clear its opposition to generalized fuel subsidies. These proved expensive and inefficient when they were tried a decade and a half ago.

There was once a scheme to subsidise the wheat used by bakers to produce bread, but it was difficult to administer.

Bernardo offered no political position on the war and did not say whether the Mozambican government supports one side or the other.

However, later in the day. Foreign Minister Veronica Macamo read out to the media, a declaration which simply called for a cessation of hostilities and urged “the exercise of moderation and the protection of human life”.

Read: Ukraine: Mozambique’s govt issues statement calling for “cessation of hostilities” and “constructive dialogue”

She said that a solution to the conflict should be based on “the cardinal principles of the United Nations Charter”. Macamo wanted to see “a constructive dialogue between the parties, with a view to a lasting political solution.”

She added that the 15 Mozambican students in Ukraine are all safe and have all left the country. Five are now in Hungary, four in Poland, two in Romania, and one in Moldova. Two are still traveling to Slovakia, and one has made her way back to Mozambique.

Macamo’s figures are slightly different from those given by Abilio Soeiro, the honorary consul of Ukraine in Maputo, who put the number of Mozambican students at 18.

The Russian aggression was the subject of an emergency debate at the United Nations General Assembly in New York on Wednesday.

The Assembly passed a resolution which demanded that Russia “immediately, completely and unconditionally withdraw all of its military forces from the territory of Ukraine within its internationally recognized borders.”

The overwhelming majority of UN member states voted for the resolution which passed by 141 votes to five, with 35 abstentions. The only countries to support Russia were Belarus (its partner in the attack on Ukraine), Syria (whose government is heavily dependent on Russian military support), Eritrea and North Korea (two states which always come at the bottom of international assessments of democracy and human rights).

Mozambique abstained. The Southern African Development Community (SADC) was divided. Botswana, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Comoros, Lesotho, Malawi, Mauritius, Seychelles and Zambia voted in favour of the resolution. Joining Mozambique in abstention were Angola, Namibia. South Africa, Tanzania, Zimbabwe and Madagascar. Eswatini did not vote.

Source: AIM