The Mozambican government announced today a downward revision of fuel prices, justifying the measure with the drop in acquisition prices in the international market and the need to reduce the cost of living.
“The reasons for this adjustment include the decline in the cost of acquiring petroleum products at the international level, as well as the need to reduce the cost of living, mitigate the economic impact, and ease the cost of products and services that directly depend on fuel. This reduction is expected to restore families’ purchasing power,” said the president of the Energy Regulatory Authority (Arene), Paulo da Graça, during a press conference in Maputo.
Starting from February 20, the price of one liter of gasoline will decrease from 86.25 meticais (€1.29) to 85.82 meticais (€1.28).
The price of petroleum will drop from 87.05 meticais (€1.30) per liter to 69.35 meticais (€1.00), diesel will decrease from 91.23 meticais (€1.36) to 86.79 meticais (€1.30), the price of cooking gas will remain at 86.05 meticais (€1.29) per kilogram, and vehicular natural gas will be reduced from 44.52 meticais (€0.66) per liter to 43.40 meticais (€0.65).
Mozambican President Daniel Chapo admitted on Sunday that the government would intervene with measures to lower fuel costs, which, he said, increase prices for end consumers.
This month, the Mozambican government approved a plan consisting of 77 measures to be implemented within the first 100 days of governance for the 2025-2029 five-year period, with a “direct impact on the well-being of the population.”
“The goal of this plan is to establish a solid foundation for implementing a national agenda that promotes economic, social, and political stability and development,” reads the document consulted by Lusa, which outlines short-term actions with “impactful results” in areas such as social and political stability, education, health, anti-corruption efforts, employment and youth policies, infrastructure and public services, justice, agriculture and food security, economic growth and resource mobilization, and natural resource management.
This agenda comes at a time of ongoing protests and work stoppages in the country. Besides challenging the results of the general elections held on October 9, Mozambicans are also protesting against the high cost of living and unemployment.
During the protests, at least 327 people have died, including around two dozen minors, and approximately 750 people have been shot, according to the electoral platform Decide, a non-governmental organization monitoring electoral processes.
The demonstrations and work stoppages were initially called by former presidential candidate Venâncio Mondlane, who does not recognize the election results. The protests are now mainly led by young people questioning the 50 years of governance by the Mozambique Liberation Front (Frelimo). Beyond the demand for electoral transparency, the protests also highlight concerns over unemployment and low education levels, which affect a third of the approximately 9.4 million young people in Mozambique’s 32-million population.
Lusa, 20/02/2025
