Kenyans jumped into a celebration mode on Monday when reports emerged that the prices of maize flour are going to be reduced by half.
For weeks now, Kenyans have been grappling with hiked maize flour prices that went as high as Kshs230 for a 2kg packet.
It was reported that the 2kg packet will now cost Kshs100 while the 1kg packet will retail at Kshs52 after the government introduced a subsidy programme. The new prices were expected to last till after elections with hopes that by then, the flour market prices would have gone back to normal.
The celebrations have however been cut short after the ministry of Agriculture failed to reach an agreement with millers on the subsidy programme by the end of Monday evening, according to a report from Citizen digital.
The proposal indicated that millers would receive compensation from the government for reducing maize flour prices by half through an Escrow account at the Central Bank of Kenya.
“The Cereal Millers Association (CMA) is consulting with the Ministry of Agriculture and other relevant stakeholders on how best to reduce maize flour prices. Negotiations are at an advanced stage, but no prices have been set,” Cereal Millers Association CEO Paloma Fernandes told Citizen Digital.
Further consultations on how to reduce flour prices will go on later this week.
Previous attempts by the government to cushion Kenyans from the hiked maize prices have not been successful. Last month, Agriculture CS Peter Munya announced that the government had waived all levies on all maize imports. The move saw the prices go down only by Kshs2.
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