The fuel shortage persists. Long queues of vehicles can be seen once more in front of service stations. Petroleum products are becoming scarce even though they constitute the bulk of the imports in terms of currencies that the country injects into this sector.
Benjamin Kuriyo, Director of publications
The Burundian economy is faltering. The country does not have enough foreign currency to cover its imports. By contagion effect, imported products plunge the country into an inflationary spiral. In the middle of the rice harvest, this cereal, widely consumed in urban centers, is priceless. Prices remain volatile on the market. Moreover, inflation driven by food products stood at 28% in February 2023.
The government is trying to provide answers to this problem, but the service stations remain dry. There are still disruptions in the fuel supply. The arrival of a new player in the circuit last August seemed promising, but the situation remains worrying. Regideso, a national water and elective company, is unable at all to meet the growing demand for water, fuel and electricity.
Les promesses de la Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited to supply fuel to Burundi are slow to materialize. The visit of the Minister of Finance at the beginning of this year to Nigeria was conclusive in putting an end to this problem. When the black gold from the new refinery of the first African fortune Aliko Dangote will land in the tanks? A difficult question to answer, especially since transporting fuel to Bujumbura is a burden for investors, especially since there is no pipeline linking the producing countries to the consumers.
It should not be forgotten that the country is going through an economic crisis resulting from the financial disorder in terms of currency management and refinancing policy. The country would need regarding 300 million USD just to import the fuel while export earnings are plummeting. A glimmer of hope is on the horizon with the revitalization of the sector and the imminent resumption of the exploitation of strategic minerals, especially since the project to revise the Mining Code is at an advanced stage. The country is struggling to mobilize currencies in a context of economic gloom. Industries show a crying lack of raw materials and energy to operate. In terms of bilateral cooperation, development partners are indignant regarding the poor management of funding. This slows down the implementation of development programs. In-depth institutional reforms are needed for efficient management of grants and financing.