The Zimbabwe government has suspended duty on imports of grocery items for the next six months in a move meant to contain a recent spike in basic commodities.
In a letter to the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority, Ministry of Finance and Economic Development permanent secretary George Guvamatanga said on Tuesday that the government has designated 15 basic commodities whose imports are exempt from duty until November 16.
“In view of the above, the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority is hereby authorised to suspend duty on the following products for a period of six months with effect from 17 May 2022: rice; flour; cooking oil; margarine; salt; sugar; maize meal; milk powder; infants milk formula; tea, whether or not flavoured; petroleum jelly; toothpaste; bath soap; laundry bar; and washing powder,” the letter said.
Prices of basic commodities have shot up in recent weeks, with the cost of some commodities more than doubling since the end of March.
The spike in prices has been blamed on the rapid depreciation of the Zimbabwe dollar on a thriving parallel forex market where the US greenback is fetching as much as 500 local units against an official exchange rate of 284.9:1.
JN/APA