These are the figures from Statistics Mauritius for the past month, which have been published on Thursday 07 April. In this monthly report, the analysis is that the inflation rate is now in two digits with the recent increases. The Year-on-Year Inflation, compared to February 2022 when the rate was 9%, stands at 10.7% at the end of March. As for the Headline inflation, it is at 6% for the month of March, an increase of 0.8% as compared to February.
Increases to the detriment of the average consumer
The Consumer Price Index (CPI) between February and March 2022 shows an increase of 2.1%, from 117.6 to 120.1 points. This increase is attributed to higher food prices where the household basket is currently estimated to be 12-15% more expensive. In the ‘Vegetables’ sub-index only, the increase is 1.0 point while the ‘Food and non-alcoholic beverages’ sub-index shows an increase of 4.2%. The rise in alcoholic beverages, non-consumer goods and petrol prices had a snowball effect on almost all products, with the Fuel section rising by 0.5 points., and for ‘other products and services’ 0.3 points.
The global situation is not reassuring
The pandemic situation has been affecting us for more than two years now, and now with the war in Ukraine, the prices of a number of products worldwide, especially food, are being affected. Faced with this fallout, the Bank of Mauritius has raised the Key Repo Rate to 2% in early March 2022, but fears the worst to come. The BOM has also released its figures for the Gross Official International Reserves (GOIR), which rose by 6%, thus bringing imports to 17.0 months in March. The recent analysis of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is not reassuring where it was mentioned that prices will continue to rise for an indefinite period. Neither is the minimum salary of Rs 10,200 of the Mauritian nor are the pensions of various categories enough.
Proposals for better consumption
Eating as one used to does cost an arm and a leg! The most concerned are proposing various solutions. Clency Bibi of the General Workers’ Federation (GWF) proposes a targeting of subsidies, exemption from VAT on basic necessities and aid for the poorest.
Jayen Chellum, Secretary General of the Mauritius Consumers’ Association, has proposed extending the list of controlled products, introducing a price control mechanism to alleviate those at the bottom of the social ladder, abolishing taxes on the most consumed basic products, introducing a 5% Tax Band for salaries not exceeding Rs 45,000 and extending the 10% Tax Band.
Nando Bodha calls for the introduction of a Voucher system for the most vulnerable people, a reduction in the tax on petroleum products which automatically increase prices, a system of control on traders who cause artificial scarcity by even increasing prices and the achievement of food self-sufficiency where Mauritius will produce what it eats and eat what it produces.
