Africa-Press – Senegal. Forty thousand tons of onions will be introduced on the Senegalese market by the Magal de Touba scheduled for September 4, assured Serigne Diaw, deputy director of internal trade, in charge of training and the deployment of 1,000 consumer volunteers.
“By the end of the week, 10 thousand tons will be introduced. A delegation will go to Morocco on Thursday, to negotiate, and before the Magal, 40 thousand tons will be introduced to supply the market so that the situation returns to normal,” he said.
Serigne Diaw took part in the national meeting devoted to the preparations for the Magal de Touba. The meeting took place under the chairmanship of the Minister of the Interior, Antoine Félix Abdoulaye Diome, and in the presence of Serigne Bassirou Macké Abdou Khadre, president of the organizing committee of this religious event. This commemorates the departure into exile in Gabon of the founder of Mouridism, Cheikh Ahmadou Bamba Mbacké.
The markets are well supplied with basic products, he assured, relying on a last bulletin taking stock of the situation of this commodity, Monday at 6 p.m.
“We have toured the markets and nothing is missing on the market. We only have one concern, and that is the price of the onion. This is not a first since last year, at the same time, we experienced the same situation, ”he recalled.
Serigne Diaw indicated that the tension on the price of onions is to be linked to the context which has prevailed at the world level for the past three years, with in particular the war in Ukraine.
“Local production is exhausted at this time and imported production sets in. This is called the period of cohabitation [and which] gives the impression that there is a drying up of the market”.
He refuted any shortage in the market, indicating that the problem lies rather in the high price of onions. “There is no shortage. We have 22,500 tons of onions available. The problem is the price. That’s why we have to flood the market,” he said.
He announces that the price will drop before the Magal de Touba due to the forthcoming introduction of 40,000 tons on the market.
« We introduced 2,400 tons the day before yesterday, to which will be added 10,000 tons expected at the end of the week and 40,000 tons expected before the Magal, the price will drop », assured Serigne Diaw.
The deputy director of internal trade, in charge of training and deploying the 1,000 consumer volunteers, also declared that the supply of butane gas and fuel “is not a problem”.
Mr. Diaw that quality control will be strengthened in relation to the defense and security forces, to « stop » crooked traders who attempt to introduce prohibited products on the market.
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