Some basic commodities such as sugar, sardines, vegetable cooking oil, eggs, detergents, soap, rice, tomato pastes are currently being sold by various teams to the public at cheaper prices in major cities across the country. Deployed by the Ministry of Trade in partnership with several wholesalers, the caravans have become visible at road junctions and some popular neighbourhood markets since Tuesday 8 November.
At the main market in the Mendong neighbourhood in Yaounde last Friday 11 November, a caravan made up of two vehicles could be seen around midday offering a wide variety of commodities to a growing number of customers. Detergent sachets commonly sold at FCFA 75 or even FCFA 100 per unit in stores were retailed at 30 sachets for FCFA 500. A litre of vegetable cooking oil cost FCFA 1,100 instead of FCFA FCFA 1,250. As for food items, a sack of rice weighing 5 kg was sold at FCFA 2,000 instead of FCFA 2,500. “Packets of sugar weighing 1kg and sold at FCFA 650 are the most demanded by customers,” said Nana Abdoullahi who was in charge of the sales operation. He admitted that sales were high for he recorded between FCFA 1,8 million and FCFA 2,5 million per day.
Keeping a close watch on the promotion sales on the field, the Delegate for Trade for the Centre Region, Nicanor Ndjinang Zanga, said the caravan sales aimed at reducing the distribution chain between wholesalers and final consumers. “There are so many middlemen in the chain whose services and profit margins account for the increase in prices of basic commodities,’ he said. By encouraging some partner wholesalers to sell directly to consumers, he said, the consumer pays a lower price. He said musical animation will accompany all sales points as from today Monday 14 November, while a Basic Commodities Trade Fair will be organised at the end of November at the May 20 Avenue.
The caravan sales that will continue this week will continue till January 2012 to leave no chance to speculators who distort market prices at the end of every year.
