Malawi should reduce fuel prices – Consumer watchdog

The Consumer Association of Malawi (CAMA) on Thursday accused the Malawi Energy Regulatory Authority (MERA) for delay in reducing prices of fuel in response to the continued fuel prices on the International market as well as appreciation of the local currency (the Kwacha).

CAMA Executive Director John Kapito said Thursday said the authority has failed to implement the Automatic Pricing Mechanism (APM) as early as November last year.

“Malawi through MERA were supposed to reduce the pump price in November because Petroleum prices worldwide have been going down since October and recently it is our local Kwacha which is appreciating but nothing has come up from MERA,” he said.

But MERA Executive Officer, Ellias Hausi, said the authority is powerless to make decisions in absence of the board.

“Consumers in the country have to wait from government to appoint the board for them to start benefiting from the pump price reduction,” he said.

Under APM once the threshold has reached 5 per cent minus or plus, to the disadvantage of the consumer prices automatically go up while to the advantage, the prices go up on the pump.

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