The Cement Importers Association of The Gambia has outlined measures that it said the association can implement to end the intermittent cement shortages and price hikes that the Gambian population has been grappling with for more than one year now.
The Gambia government last year increased the tariff on a bag of imported cement from D30 to D180. The move, according to the government, has been taken to protect Jah Oil, Salaam and Gacem cement factories from major international cement factories.
However, the tariff policy was chastised in many quarters as many people saw it as a trade barrier and violation of trade competition rules and ECOWAS protocol on free movement of people as well as thee bloc’s trade treaty.
Though, Jah Oil, Gacem and Salaam cement factories had given the government the assurance that they would be able to meet the country’s cement demand while anchoring prices at affordable levels, economists such as international consultant Dr. Ousman Gajigo was unconvinced as he pointed out in one of his write-ups that the tariff policy will have ramifications on the population as The Gambia lacks the raw materials to produce cement locally.
Since the introduction of The Gambia government’s 180% trade tariff, the country has been experiencing on-and-off cement shortages and price hikes. The tariff policy also led to job losses in the cement trade value chain.
But the Cement Importers Association of The Gambia, one of the major cement importers associations in the country, said on Monday that it has devised measures that, if implemented by the government, will restore stability to the cement market. The Cement Importers Association of The Gambia said its measures are geared towards facilitating the availability, accessibility and affordability of cement in the country while at the same time ensuring that quality does not drop.
“A bag of cement from Senegal, as at the current CFA exchange rate, can be sold at Farafenni at D395 to D400 and between D420 and D425 in Basse. In Banjul, a bag of cement can be sold between D425 and D430,” the association assured.
According to The Gambia Cement Importers Association gave further assurance that it will ensure the availability of cement across the country in two weeks while offering consumers a variety of choices by doing business with four reputable cement companies in Senegal.
“We will meet the country’s cement demand in two weeks by doing business with Soccocim, Sahel Industries, Ciments de l’Afrique (CIMAF) and Dangote cement factories,” the association said.
“We will also ensure consumers have the opportunity to make choices as we can import 32R, 32.5R and 42R,” it added.
The association said it has been compelled to come up with these measures due to the hardship that The Gambian population is facing due to intermittent cement shortages and price hikes.
