For almost a week, and to everyone’s surprise, the bag of cement has become scarce on the market and the price continues to rise in several hardware stores in the city of N’Djamena.
Among wholesalers, the price of CIMAF Chad of 35Kg is set at 8,250 FCFA and that of 42Kg costs 8,750 FCFA. On the other hand, in small hardware stores, traders who cite a transport problem further increase the price. The CIMAF Chad goes from 8,500 to 9,000 or even 9,500 FCFA and the Dangoté brand imported from neighboring Nigeria costs 10,000 or even 11,000 FCFA instead of 9,000 FCFA.
The traders interviewed brandish the difficulties in transporting these materials from the factory and the state of the roads during transport in this rainy season as the cause of this price increase.
These reasons put forward by traders, however, remain very unconvincing. Since they diversify from one merchant to another. “They say it was the closing of the borders that caused this price increase. We can understand for Dangoté cement but for the cement that is produced here in Chad leaves us speechless,” said a customer when questioned on this subject.
The CIMAF company reacts
In a press release, CIMAF Chad states that the information disseminated concerning a surge in prices is only the result of speculation by certain distributors and importers, who are exploiting the strong anticipated demand due to the rainy season, to be able to increase their sales figures. ‘business.
It also reaffirms its commitment to guaranteeing a regular and reliable supply of cement, despite external speculation. She therefore asks the population and market players to refer exclusively to the official prices of CIMAF Chad, and to report any irregularities to its services.
The demand for cement in Chad has increased significantly since the beginning of the 2000s. The oil boom experienced by the country has led to changes in the use of construction materials. Before the start of the 2000s, the use of cement as a construction material was still reserved for a minority of Chadians due to low purchasing power. This changed drastically with the advent of oil exploitation, thus explaining the dizzying increase in demand for cement.
Mbailassem Emmanuel
