Zimbabwe: Rise in bread price due to high forex requirements

Zimbabwe is witnessing a rise in bread price from $1.40 to $2.50. The National Bakers' Association of Zimbabwe has attributed the shortages of bread on the market to lack of foreign currency to import wheat to make flour.

On Sunday, February 3, most of the outlets in Zimbabwe's Bulawayo sold bread at the price of $2.50. Some supermarkets, as well as some bakeries, have also sold it at $2 per loaf. President of the National Bakers' Association of Zimbabwe, Mr Ngoni Mazango opined that they had submitted applications for foreign currency to Government and were waiting for it to release the money.

"The Government has promised us an intervention on the foreign currency which we require as bakers which were going to account for 80 percent of our forex requirements but in the month of November we only received 30 percent of the 80 percent. In December we received 27 percent of the 80 percent and this January we received 9 percent. We are grateful for the gesture, but it is not enough," Mazango said.

He also added that they had been engaging Government and the Grain Millers' Association of Zimbabwe (GMAZ) on the way forward. "Our stakeholders are saying they don't have money to pay for wheat. We hope that they will address the issue as soon as possible before we run out of bread completely," Mazango added.

Garikai Chaunza, the media and public relations manager of GMAZ said although Zimbabwe has witnessed a rise in bread price, the price of flour has remained unaltered. "The GMAZ has noted the recent increase in bread prices. These bread price increases are, however, not in any way associated with flour cost drivers as the product (flour) supply price to bakers has remained constant," he said.