East African Business Week

Nairobi, Kenya - Calls have mounted for the Kenyan Government to "urgently" make further policy interventions to check the rising cost of living.
Kenyan consumer lobby groups maintained last week that Government must move beyond its move of reducing excise tax for diesel and kerosene and make additional interventions to effectively further cushion citizens against rising fuel and commodity prices.
Runaway inflation and spiraling energy costs have in recent months shored up the cost of living for the majority of Kenyans.
Retail outlets have accordingl to  a survey carried out by EABW last week, showed they have continued to adjust their commodity prices upwards as was the case in the preceding months of February and March. Matatu fares have also gone up by more than half forcing Kenyans to dig deeper into their pockets.
On Monday, last week, the Kenyan Government moved to avert a looming crisis that threatened to hit Kenya, when it reduced excise tax on diesel and kerosene to help cushion the impact of rising fuel prices.
Civil society groups had threatened to hold a series of mass rallies to highlight the rising cost of living.
Finance Minister Uhuru Kenyatta announced tax cuts of 20% and 30% for diesel and kerosene pump prices respectively both of which have a direct impact of the lifestyle of majority of Kenyans.
Uhuru announced duty on kerosene will decline 30% and the tax on diesel will fall 20%.
The tax cuts on diesel and kerosene prices did not take place immediately and are to await direction from the Kenya's tax body the Kenya Revenue Authority.
Towards the start of the Easter weekend a survey carried out by the East African Business Week revealed pumps prices at most fuel retail outlets had not been adjusted to reflect the lower prices.
It is expected that once KRA establishes how much fuel in the country had been charged tax at the old rate, it would be able to say when the new prices would come into effect.
Based on the new tax cuts diesel prices should have effectively dropped by four shillings to Kshs103 per litre and Kerosene by Kshs 1.52 to Kshs 88.5 per litre.
"We are reducing our revenues to help ease the problem," Uhuru told reporters in Nairobi while announcing the tax cuts.
And on Thursday last week in his Easter address to the nation, President Mwai Kibaki acknowledged the hard economic times Kenyans are facing saying the Government would do more to address the situation.
"This year we are celebrating Easter at a time when we are facing various challenges relating to our livelihoods.  
“Some of these challenges are the result of developments in other parts of the world and the vagaries of weather," said Kibaki.
He added: "The Government, however, is committed to implement measures to ensure the well being of all Kenyans to the fullest extent possible.  The Government will take measures to ensure that inflation is under control and that food stocks are released to ensure that prices remain in the reach of all Kenyans."
Through various demonstrations held last week in the capital Nairobi to highlight the rising cost of living consumer lobby group Consumer Federation of Kenya however maintained the Government has to do more to cushion Kenyans against the rising costs of living saying the excise tax cuts would not impact greatly on the lower class citizens.