Petrol is sold to onlookers by merchants on the sides of Bangui’s roadways. The Central African Republic has experienced a severe gasoline scarcity for the last two months. Motor taxi drivers in the capital are either quitting their jobs or paying more for fuel.
“When you go to the stations, you can’t find any fuel, whereas in the stations you buy a liter for 885 CFA francs. But now the stations are not working. This makes the prices high.” said Job, motor-taxi driver.
“Some drivers have parked their motorbikes because of this shortage. Because they don’t want to have problems with their bosses. If you don’t buy at the stations, at the roadside it’s more expensive and you lose revenue. So some people are handing over the motorbike to the boss at the moment to avoid this,” he added.
The price of gasoline has been set by the government at 865 CFA francs (1.32 euros) per litre for many years. A bottle can cost up to 40% extra on the street.
“We pay taxes there and on the Central African side we also pay the customs officers. On their side, it’s 100 FCFA per can. Here it’s 250 FCFA. What we do, we don’t earn billions. But we are looking for ways to survive,” added Max Andjiba, a street vendor.
Petrol dealers purchase their product on the grey market, where the goods are frequently made with subpar additives.
Around Bangui, hundreds of gas station employees have lost their jobs and been replaced with roadside vendors.
Despite having significant oil reserves and material riches like gold and diamonds, the World Bank estimates that 71 percent of Central Africa’s six million inhabitants live below the $2.15 per day poverty threshold.
