Burundi : consumers overwhelmed by the general rise in prices
Burundi is experiencing a sort of cascading price increase for basic necessities. This leads to the high cost of the living. The purchasing power of the inhabitants has not changed. Consumers say they are completely overwhelmed by this general increase in prices. INFO SOS Médias Burundi
The latest price increase is that of each product of the Burundi brewery company, Brarudi, of 500 francs. It happened on August 1.
Thus, the current price of a bottle of soft drink was set at 1500 Burundi francs while it was purchased at 1000 Burundi francs.
That of an Amstel 65 cl was set at 3000 while it was sold at 2500.
The Primus went from 1,700 francs to 2,200. The small Primus 50 cl is for its part at 2,600, it also saw an increase of 500 francs in its unit price.
The Amstel Royale now sells for 3100 Burundi francs in bars, bistros and shops while it used to sell for 2600.
The Primus Black sells for 2000 while it was bought for 1600.
Consumers say they are overwhelmed by this cascading increase in the price of sensitive products.
Other increases
Last month was marked by an upward revision of the prices of administrative documents and vehicle documents.
The price of gasoline and other oil products also increased during the month of July.
Its upward revision led to the upward revision of the price of the transport ticket throughout Burundi.
In less than a week after the increase in the transport ticket, the price of locally produced sugar was also revised upwards. That of cement increased on Monday.
Wages
The wage harmonization policy has been in operation since July 2023. Some state officials have started tasting on this cake with the July wage release.
However, some officials said they were disappointed by this general increase in all basic necessities.
According to teachers, this general increase in products is a government plan to “dilute the wage harmonization policy”.
Others believe the government has raised wages with the right hand by raising spending with the left hand.
Other civil servants regret that the government is seeking at all costs to “fill in the budget deficit of the general state budget for the 2023-2024 financial year by increasing taxes and duties so that it is able to pay the salaries of its employees”.
All these contacted officials ask the elected representatives of the people to wake up to exercise their role. They feel that MPs no longer fulfill the role for which they were elected.
“The government does not take into account the purchasing power of the population to set the prices of sensitive products”, lament the inhabitants.
And they added, “The authorities are waiting for the shortage to be generalized for certain products in order to legalize the prices set by speculative traders”.
“Fizzy drinks had become impossible to find throughout the national territory for 6 months. Traders took advantage of this shortage to manipulate the consumer price. It varied between 1200 and 1500. Currently Brarudi has just set the price at 1500 Burundi francs soft drinks for retailers”, gave an example of a consumer from southwestern Burundi.
This appears to consumers as an indirect way of confirming the prices of Brarudi products set by speculators.
In a press release, the oldest brewery in the small East African nation explained the rise in the price of its products by that of raw materials.
Cement and beverages just saw a price hike for the second time since October 2022.
“Unfortunately, it is the small people who suffer all the consequences of this generalized price increase”, regrets a resident of the commercial city of Bujumbura.
Even if the price of basic necessities continues to increase, they are still not found on the Burundian market.
