Minibus operators in some parts of the country have started reacting to the Malawi Energy Regulatory Authority (Mera) decision to reduce fuel pump prices by cutting passenger fares.
In Blantyre, passengers travelling on the Blantyre-Limbe and Blantyre-Nancholi routes are now paying K1 500 from K2 000, representing a 25 percent reduction while the fare from Limbe to Mangochi has also gone down from K30 000 to K25 000.
Passengers travelling from Area 24 to Lilongwe Minibus Depot are now paying K1 500 from K2 000 while fares from Lilongwe Bus Depot to Nsungwi in Area 25, either through Kanengo or Area 49, have dropped from K4 000 to K3 000.
In an interview yesterday, Minibus Owners Association of Malawi (Moam) general secretary Coaxley Kamange said the fare reductions followed calls from Passenger Welfare Association (Pawa) and other stakeholders for transport operators to adjust fares following the fuel price cuts.
He said the association engaged its members and advised them to reduce fares by at least 20 percent.
Kamange also said some operators increased fares due to a rise in prices of motor vehicle spare parts and other consumables such as engine oil when fuel prices were rising, but had not reduced prices following the recent fuel adjustment.
He said: “We advised our members to adjust fares downwards following last week’s fuel price decrease. However, moving forward, the Competition and Fair Trading Commission [CFTC] and the Consumers Association of Malawi [Cama] should ensure there is a proper price monitoring mechanism to balance input and output costs in the public transport sector.”
Meanwhile, Malawi Coalition of Kabaza Associations (Ma cok a s a) na t i o n a l chairperson Moses Mwalabu said the association has been encouraging its members to reduce fares, but some have failed to do so due to high daily targets imposed by motorcycle taxi owners.
“Immediately after the government announced the fuel price reduction, we were expected to reduce fares. However, the challenge is that most of us are given a target of K30 000 per day, which is difficult to achieve,” he said.
Pawa and Cama have been calling for reductions in transport fares and prices of goods and
MDF chiefs say crew was experienced services following the reduction in fuel price.
Pawa executive director Don Napuwa welcomed the reduction in minibus fares, describing it as a positive development.
He said passengers had suffered from high transport costs for a long time and urged government to consider regulating the transport sector.
In a separate interview, Cama executive director John Kapito acknowledged that some minibus operators had started reducing fares and expressed hope that the trend would extend to other goods and services nationwide.
Linda Mkandawire, a resident of Nsungwi in Area 25, Lilongwe, said the reduction has helped her save about K2 000 per day.
Mera last week announced new fuel prices with petrol decreasing from K6 209 to K5 619 per litre, diesel from K6 687 to K6 306 and paraffin from K5 709 to K4 771 per litre.
The regulator said the adjustment was due to a decrease in the average free-on-board prices of petrol, diesel and paraffin compared to the previous review.
