Cameroon: Food prices on the rise as end of year festivities approach

By Shanta Sih

The end of year season known for parties and consequently high food consumption is at the doorstep and managers of most supermarkets in the cities of Douala, Yaounde and Buea say they have been placing their orders in larger quantities:

“We have ordered and bought enough products and kept so that during the end of year festive period, everyone can benefit and not face shortages,” beverage shop owner Paul Njie in Douala tells CNA.

Commodities such as tomatoes, beef, fish, chicken, rice, groundnut and vegetable oil are being bought in larger quantities and stocked in refrigerators.

“We have already bought a lot of fresh fish and kept in our refrigerators in Douala, Yaounde and Buea aside vegetables which can easily perish,” Denis Mokam a shop owner in Douala explains.

Chicken on its part is already a luxury on the market due to its high demand during the festive period. Some Cameroonians are now wondering why prices increase so much during this season whereas they could nad should be cheaper to permit them celerate in style. “Chicken usually sold at F CFA 3,500 during November moves to F CFA 6,000 and sometimes 7,000 when its December. I still cannot understand why. Is it that something causes the change? Sometimes I’m even scared to tell my kids they cannot consume chicken during christmas or new year because i cannot afford but sometimes we have to sacrifice, “Mrs. Tamjong Lucia a parent living in Buea laments.

“Living in Cameroon alone is not easy. Every sector is difficult from milk, ovaltine, taxi fare, house rents, food stuffs, water, in fact everything becomes tougher everyday .Money is hard to even see talk more of touch and it’s the festive season. Prices are doubling so are we supposed to die? Because at the end of the month i receive my salary as a teacher after settling bills I’m left with absolutely nothing.You go to the market during this period to buy fresh fish a kilo they give u 1 fish, meat is worse let me not talk of chicken,” Terence Muyang a secondary school teacher in Douala complains.

“I am Elias Awambang and I am a butcher in Buea. We also increase prices of red meat because we cannot buy a chicken for F CFA 7,000 and a single fish at 1,200 and expect butchers to sell meat from 1,000. We also have to survive. It is not easy on anyone in Cameroon right now. We cannot even understand What is happening but we will sell meat from 2,000 too because even a basket of tomato has moved from F CFA 3,000 to 6,000”.

How ever,the minister of trade has promised to regulate prices this festive period by organizing promotional sales to enable everyone have commodities at the best prices during this festive period.