How Treasury is driving up cooking oil prices

A shopper compares the prices of cooking oil at a supermarket in Kakamega town. [Mumo Munuve, Standard]

Kenya has maintained a higher import duty on vegetable oils than other East African Community (EAC) countries, a move that has contributed to high prices of cooking oil.

Despite the spike in the retail price of cooking oil, Kenya has opted to suspend the application of the EAC common external tariff (CET) of 25 per cent.

Instead, the government has applied a...