Tanzanian President Samia Hassan called an emergency cabinet meeting on Sunday night to discuss fuel price spikes in the country.
The Energy and Water Utilities Regulatory Authority, the country’s energy regulator, declared record-high fuel prices last week.
Prime Minister Kassim Majaliwa, the ministries of energy and finance, and others attended the cabinet meeting in the coastal city of Dar es Salaam.
“The president directed those present to find an immediate solution to the rising fuel prices in the country,” the president’s office said in a statement.
News Central on Friday reported that Tanzanian fuel prices have surged as tensions in eastern Europe continue to wreak havoc on the global oil market.
Petrol will be sold at Tsh3,148 ($1.36) a litre at the pump in Dar es Salaam, according to the latest ceiling prices for petroleum products announced late Tuesday by the Energy and Water Utilities Regulatory Authority (EWURA), up from Tsh2,861 ($1.23) and Tsh2,692 ($1.16), respectively, in April.
The new prices, which take effect on Wednesday, May 4, represent a 9.5 percent increase for gasoline and a 17.1 percent increase for diesel, respectively, following increases of 12 and 21 percent in April.
According to EWURA, the retail price for kerosene in Dar es Salaam will be Tsh3,112 ($1.34) per litre compared to Tsh2,682 ($1.15) in April and Tsh2,209 ($0.95) in March.
Petrol imported through the port of Dar es Salaam would cost Tsh3,015 ($1.302) per litre, while petrol imported through Tanga will cost Tsh3,028 ($1.308) and Mtwara will cost Tsh3,044 ($1.315).
Dar’s diesel exports were priced at Tsh3,125 ($1.35) per litre, Tanga’s at Tsh3,131 ($1.353), and Mtwara’s at Tsh3,176 ($1.372).
Kerosene imports came solely through the port of Dar es Salaam and will be sold at a wholesale price of Tsh2,980 ($1.287) per litre, excluding transport costs to other regions of the country.