KIGALI, Oct. 3 (Xinhua) -- Rwanda will raise the price of petroleum pump prices for gasoline and diesel effective Oct. 4, the Rwanda Utilities Regulatory Authority (RURA) announced Tuesday.
The new pump prices indicate that the maximum retail price for gasoline will increase to 1,822 Rwandan francs (about 1.48 U.S. dollars) per liter, up from 1,639 Rwandan francs per liter.
Additionally, the price of diesel will rise to 1,662 Rwandan francs per liter, up from 1,492 Rwandan francs, as announced by the RURA in a statement.
These new fuel prices will be in effect for the next two months, read the statement.
According to the RURA, these revisions are based primarily on price changes of petroleum products registered on the international market. In August, the RURA said fuel pump prices were revised in line with a general increase in petroleum product prices registered on the international market.
In 2021, the government of Rwanda stabilized fuel pump prices through a strategy of foregoing some taxes levied on imports of petroleum products.
The decision was taken in order to avoid the negative consequences of higher fuel price increases, especially a generalized price increase (inflation) that would decelerate the speed of Rwanda's post-COVID-19 economic recovery.
Speaking to national broadcaster Rwanda Television Tuesday about the spike in fuel prices, Jean Chrysostome Ngabitsinze, Rwandan minister of trade and industry, said that the government would continue to vigilantly monitor shifts in the global oil market and consistently make decisions that prioritize the well-being of fuel consumers in Rwanda.
