Malawi has been facing severe fuel shortages for several weeks. PHOTO | COURTESY
Dar es Salaam. The Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA) has denied claims that it is responsible for delays in the fuel supply to Malawi.
TRA clarified that there are no delays on their side, and the responsibility lies with the transporters and their agents.
This statement follows claims by the Transporter Association of Malawi, which, while addressing fuel shortages, suggested that delays in clearing fuel at the port by TRA were causing the scarcity.
According to sources from Malawi, speaking in an interview, the association’s spokesperson, Mr Frank Banda, mentioned that delays in clearing 60 fuel lorries carrying 2.4 million litres of diesel and petrol by TRA had worsened the situation.
However, TRA provided information showing that a fuel tanker carrying 51,154,810 litres of fuel – 28,609,620 litres of petrol and 22,545,198 litres of diesel – had been at the Tanga port to offload fuel destined for Malawi which is currently experiencing fuel shortages.
“By January 8, 2024, 50 trucks carrying 1,986,363.9 litres of petrol and 60 trucks carrying 2,182,902.6 litres of diesel had left the port,” according to TRA.
TRA explained that the clearing and forwarding agent, Epic Cargo, had submitted the required documents on the same day, allowing the lorries to be cleared promptly.
TRA emphasised that there were no delays on their part, and the process now depends on the transporters and their agents, as the Transporters Association of Malawi expressed optimism that fuel stocks would stabilise soon, as clearance processes resumed this week.
The Transporter Association of Malawi had earlier attributed the clearance delays to the Christmas and New Year holidays.
However, official reports from Tanga Port indicated that the tanker docked on January 1, which is understood as the day which marks the end of the festive season.
Despite these issues, Malawians are assured that fuel was already on the way and the situation was expected to improve by this weekend, given that the 100 more fuel trucks from Tanga Port in Tanzania are in transit and should reach Malawi by the end of the next week, along with other supplies from Mozambique.
