Zimbabwe today increased the subsidized price of roller meal from $50 to $70 for a 10kg packet in an effort to reduce arbitrage by unscrupulous players.
The price of roller meal had shot up to $100 for a 10 kg packet but the government cut the price by half in December to protect vulnerable groups but unscrupulous players cleaned supermarket shelves of the roller meal which they then sold on the black market at a higher price.
Today’s increase still leaves a gap of $30 which some players can capitalise on.
To address this, the Ministry of Finance said it will soon announce a strengthened targeting system to make sure that vulnerable groups benefit from the subsidy.
Although the country has received some rains over the past few days, this might not be enough to enable the country to have a good harvest.
According to the World Food Programme 7.7 million Zimbabweans will need food relief this year.
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