NAIROBI, Sept. 15 (Xinhua) -- Kenya's energy sector regulator has partially ended a subsidy on fuel products, setting up the stage for higher inflation in the East African nation.
The Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (EPRA) said in a statement released in Nairobi, the Kenyan capital, Wednesday night that the government eliminated the subsidy on super petrol, the most consumed fuel in the country while reducing the subsidy on diesel and kerosene.
Kenyans will in the next one month, therefore, buy petrol at a historic high of 179.30 shillings (1.48 dollars) a liter in Nairobi, diesel at 1.37 dollars and kerosene at 1.22 dollars, with the cost of the fuels increasing between 0.16 dollars and 0.20 dollars, said EPRA in the statement that announced the monthly price reviews.
President William Ruto said Tuesday during his inauguration that his new government would end the subsidy because it is unsustainable.
The phase-out of the subsidy is expected to raise the prices of basic commodities in Kenya, pushing many consumers to the edge as fuel inflation is the key driver of the overall inflation.
Kenya's inflation hit a five-year high of 8.5 percent in August, up from 8.3 percent in July on higher prices of food and fuel.
Kenyans are currently buying a 2-kg packet of maize meal flour, the country's staple, at a high of 1.66 dollars, a rise from 0.99 dollars months ago.
Other commodities whose prices have increased significantly are cooking oil, vegetables and electricity. ■