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A Sh28 kerosene rise is a tax on the poorest kitchens in Nairobi.
Opinion. This is the view of Kibra News Network, not a news report. Write to us at news@kibranewsnetwork.co.ke if you disagree; we publish good replies.
From midnight on Wednesday, a litre of kerosene in Nairobi costs up to Sh219.87. That is Sh28.49 more than the day before. Petrol went up by Sh12.93 and diesel by Sh9.90. Kerosene, the fuel of the smallest kitchens, took the biggest hit.
Look at it as a share of the old price and the gap is wider. Kerosene is up by about 15 per cent. Petrol is up by about 6 per cent and diesel by about 4.5 per cent. Those are our sums from the figures the Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority announced on 14 October.
Now look at the reason EPRA gave. The cost of landing fuel in Kenya rose in September because of the conflict in the Middle East. Super petrol cost 11.81 per cent more to import, diesel 11.32 per cent more and kerosene 9.41 per cent more. So kerosene was the fuel whose import cost rose least, and it is the fuel whose pump price rose most. EPRA did not explain that at its briefing. It should.
Who pays
Few homes in Lavington buy kerosene. In Kibera it is the price of dinner and of light. Homes that are not on the grid, and homes that cannot afford a gas refill this month, cook on kerosene stoves and read by kerosene lamps. They buy it from the kiosk a quarter litre or half a litre at a time, and the kiosk adds its margin on top of the EPRA maximum. The real rise at the door will be more than Sh28.
The new prices run until 14 November. Diesel is also up, and diesel moves matatus and the lorries that bring food to Toi and Olympic markets. Fares and food prices will follow. A family in Lindi will feel this review three times: at the stove, at the stage and at the market.
What should happen
First, EPRA should publish the full build-up of the kerosene price: the landed cost, every tax and levy, and the margins. If the increase is driven by levies rather than by the cost of the fuel, Kenyans deserve to see that in writing, and the Treasury should say why a levy designed for other purposes is landing on the poorest households.
Second, the county and the regulator should check what kiosks in informal settlements actually charge. A maximum price that is only enforced at petrol stations is not a maximum price for Kibera.
Third, if the Government wants to help, the help should be targeted. A cut in the price of kerosene reaches people a cut in the price of petrol never will.
A fuel review is a technical exercise. Its effects are not. For a month, the people with the least will pay the most. That deserves more than a line in a press briefing.
Read the reporting this editorial is based on: Kerosene goes up by Sh28 a litre and Fuel prices go up from midnight.
That was a Kibra News Network report, read by an A I voice.
Opinion. This is the view of Kibra News Network, not a news report. Write to us at news@kibranewsnetwork.co.ke if you disagree; we publish good replies.
From midnight on Wednesday, a litre of kerosene in Nairobi costs up to Sh219.87. That is Sh28.49 more than the day before. Petrol went up by Sh12.93 and diesel by Sh9.90. Kerosene, the fuel of the smallest kitchens, took the biggest hit.
Look at it as a share of the old price and the gap is wider. Kerosene is up by about 15 per cent. Petrol is up by about 6 per cent and diesel by about 4.5 per cent. Those are our sums from the figures the Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority announced on 14 October.
Now look at the reason EPRA gave. The cost of landing fuel in Kenya rose in September because of the conflict in the Middle East. Super petrol cost 11.81 per cent more to import, diesel 11.32 per cent more and kerosene 9.41 per cent more. So kerosene was the fuel whose import cost rose least, and it is the fuel whose pump price rose most. EPRA did not explain that at its briefing. It should.
Who pays
Few homes in Lavington buy kerosene. In Kibera it is the price of dinner and of light. Homes that are not on the grid, and homes that cannot afford a gas refill this month, cook on kerosene stoves and read by kerosene lamps. They buy it from the kiosk a quarter litre or half a litre at a time, and the kiosk adds its margin on top of the EPRA maximum. The real rise at the door will be more than Sh28.
The new prices run until 14 November. Diesel is also up, and diesel moves matatus and the lorries that bring food to Toi and Olympic markets. Fares and food prices will follow. A family in Lindi will feel this review three times: at the stove, at the stage and at the market.
What should happen
First, EPRA should publish the full build-up of the kerosene price: the landed cost, every tax and levy, and the margins. If the increase is driven by levies rather than by the cost of the fuel, Kenyans deserve to see that in writing, and the Treasury should say why a levy designed for other purposes is landing on the poorest households.
Second, the county and the regulator should check what kiosks in informal settlements actually charge. A maximum price that is only enforced at petrol stations is not a maximum price for Kibera.
Third, if the Government wants to help, the help should be targeted. A cut in the price of kerosene reaches people a cut in the price of petrol never will.
A fuel review is a technical exercise. Its effects are not. For a month, the people with the least will pay the most. That deserves more than a line in a press briefing.
KNN Newsroom is the staff byline for stories written, rewritten and edited at the Kibra News Network desk. Where a story credits an outside outlet, the original source is linked at the foot of the piece.
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