• There shall be no adjustment of bus and taxi fares.
• The current fuel price increments are below the trigger-point in the fare adjustment process.
• The Association is advocating for a longer fuel price review horizon of three to six months.

Bus and Taxi Owners Association of Zambia says it has decided to employ a three months’ cumulative analysis of changes in four key economic fundamentals to help determine a trigger-point for adjustment of bus and taxi fares.
Association National Spokesperson Amis Daudi told Money FM News in an interview that four key economic fundamentals include fuel prices, performance of the Kwacha against the US dollar, inflation rate and adjustments in the regulatory, statutory and user charges in the transport sector.
Mr. Daudi stated that the Association is advocating for a more stable exchange rate of the Kwacha and a longer fuel price review horizon of three to six months on which they can anchor some stability of prices in the economy.
He said this is because the high frequency of fuel price adjustment brings about instability in prices of various goods and services consumed in the bus and taxi operations, as a result of the depreciation of the Kwacha against the US Dollar.
“We wish to lament on high frequency of fuel price adjustment. This phenomenon introduces instability in prices of various goods and services consumed in the bus and taxi operations. These two fundamentals co-mingle and run together to worsen the rate of inflation in the country. These three factors do not portend well for economic stability and create uncertainties in the business environment. The Association is advocating for a more stable exchange rate of the Kwacha and a longer fuel price review horizon of three to six months on which we can anchor some stability of prices in the economy,” Mr. Daudi stated.
Meanwhile, Mr. Daudi disclosed that there shall be no adjustment of bus and taxi fares because the current fuel price increments are below the trigger-point in the fare changes for December 2021, when bus and taxi charges were last adjusted.
“The analyzed fuel price increments show that the effective changes in prices as from December 2021, when bus and taxi fares were last adjusted, are K0.80 and K1.39 for petrol and diesel respectively. We have also analyzed the cost impact of this price increase on the basis of the fuel price increment and the adjustment of fares effected in December 2021 and found that the current fuel price increments are below the trigger-point in the fare adjustment process. Accordingly, we wish to announce that there shall be no adjustment of bus and taxi fares,” he stated.
Energy Regulation Board (ERB) has been reviewing fuel prices on a monthly basis from December 2021.