The sugar scarcity saga shows no signs of slowing in Ethiopia. In September the country’s nine regions and two city administrations received 390,000 quintals of sugar. This is 130,000 quintals less than the previous ration.
Seven sugar factories are undergoing maintenance and there are 36,000 metric tons of sugar being imported from Algeria.
Previously each household would receive 5 kilos of sugar per month from the consumer association but now that has been reduced to two kilos.
A kilo of sugar goes for between 20 birr and 30 birr in shops but is seldom available. Quotas for almost every area were down in September. In quintals this is a list of what each area received previously and what they received last month.
Addis Ababa 120,000 to 46,000, Dire Dawa 11,860 to 2,000, Oromia 152,000 to 25,000, Amhara 109,000 to 18,000, Tigray 47,000 to 9,000, SNNPR 69,000 to 17,400. Afrar and Harare below 2,000 quintals, from an undisclosed previous amount but reports say it is around half as much.
Somali 24,152, Benishangul-Gumuz 4,500, Gambela 8,000. These were unchanged from previous amounts but that is because they did not receive their previous supply due to technical issues.
Solomon Bekle, Commodity exchange head at the Addis Ababa Trade Bureau told Capital that the supply cut will clearly disturb the market.
“As far as we know, the consumer association plans 50 percent supply cuts to households and we are controlling the market to prevent price gouging. I think the problem will be solved when the imported sugar arrives and factories restart operations.”
The Sugar Corporation expects the product to reach Ethiopia by November.