Paraffin price hike leaves grandmother in darkness

GOTHATAONE MOENG
Staff Writer | Friday May 27, 2011 00:00

The grandmother, who lives with two of her grandchildren at the Diphiring lands, told Mmegi in an interview that the recent hike in fuel prices has hit her below the belt.   Babedi, who uses illuminating paraffin for lighting purposes, said that when she is at the lands she buys paraffin from a nearby tuck-shop at P6 per litre, but that now she has to fork out P11 to buy the litre. Babedi, who supplements her income by selling traditional grass brooms, said her earnings are so meagre that sometimes she is turned away because she cannot afford to buy the amount she wants. Along with other fuels, paraffin prices were recently hiked because of international increases in crude oil prices, a statement from the Ministry of Minerals, Energy and Water Resources said.  Paraffin was increased by 40t per litre. 

A paraffin user, who wished to be known only as Thebeetsile, said despite the increase in price, he has not changed his use of the fuel.

'I am never surprised at these increases.  After all, it is not as if there is an office I can go and register my complaint.  There is nothing I can do, but to continue buying,' he said.

On the other hand tuck-shop owner Elisa Mulemena said that since the increase in paraffin she has had to discontinue selling it.

'People don't buy it any longer, so I have given up on selling,' she said. Mulemena said that before the increase she used to sell a litre of paraffin for P7.50.  While Mulemena admitted that the recent increase in price has not affected her as she uses paraffin for lighting, and uses firewood and gas for cooking. She also expressed concern about the health consequences of long-term use of paraffin.

She said that she is concerned about the fumes that she and her family members inhale from the lamps.'But what can I do?  There is no electricity here.  I have thought about using solar-powered electricity, or batteries, but they are both expensive,' she said.

Paraffin use has often resulted in burns and poisoning, especially in young children.  However, as a relatively cheap fuel, paraffin is used widely in rural and low-income communities that cannot afford electricity, for light, heating and cooking.

While the picture may be a little different in Botswana, with over 55 percent of the population having access to electricity, current statistics show that close to 500 million people in sub-Saharan Africa have no access to electricity, according to Juan-Jacques Van Dongen, general manager of Phillips Healthcare Africa. 

Dongen was speaking during the Botswana leg of his Cape-to-Cairo tour at which he announced new solar powered lighting solutions aimed at providing a healthier and safer home environment. These solutions include the Solar Home Lighting System, Solar LED Torch and Solar Reading Light.