Own Correspondent|Subsidies on maize meal and rice are being restored to ensure that citizens have access to cheaper basic food stuffs and cushion them against the obtaining economic challenges, President Mnangagwa has said.

An announcement was made recently that Government had removed the subsidy on maize sold to millers and the price of mealie-meal immediately increased to more than $100 from about $65 for a 10kg bag.

Addressing youths at the 2019 national youth convention here yesterday, President Mnangagwa said mealie-meal and rice were basic commodities and removing the subsidy would affect many people.

“I want to say there are challenges that we are facing as a result of the austerity measures that we have already announced that we have eased in the 2020 budget because we have achieved what we wanted. We are now focusing on production, employment creation and youth empowerment.

“We must create safety nets to help our people. Two days ago I heard that the subsidy on mealie-meal and rice had been removed, No” said President Mnangagwa.

He said the issue of mealie-meal affects a lot of people and Government could not remove subsidy on these basic commodity.

“So I am restoring it so that the price of mealie meal is also reduced. They are going to publish tomorrow that what we had done we had not consulted the President,” he said.

President Mnangagwa said basic goods must be cheap so that everyone can afford them.

“We have a cheap food policy that we are working on to ensure that basic foods are affordable,” he said.

In the national budget, Minister of Finance and Economic Development Mthuli Ncube said the subsidies on roller meal, standard loaves of bread and cooking oil would remain but was moving from the more general subsidy of offering manufacturers cheap foreign exchange, which distorted markets and saw the products used by the rich subsidised.

State Media