Rising food prices and the effects of exchange rate depreciation have pushed up the cost of living in the region.  Save for Tanzania and Burundi, EAC states have all recorded a rise in inflation in September.

Mid last week, Uganda’s central bank raised its benchmark lending rate from 16 per cent to 17 per cent in a bid to ease inflationary pressures.

Bank of Uganda Governor Prof Emmanuel Tumusiime-Mutebile, said that the bank’s decision to increase the CBR by 5 per cent since April has dampened inflationary pressures.

“We have increased the CBR to ensure that in the medium term, the inflation edges towards the BoU policy target of 5 per cent,” Prof Mutebile said.

Uganda saw a rise in its inflation to 7.2 per cent in September, up from 6.8 per cent in August.

According to the Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS), the increase in inflation was largely attributed to the annual food crops inflation that rose to 10.2 per cent in September from 1.8 per cent a month earlier.

“Food inflation, which includes food crops and processed foods, rose by 5.9 per cent during the month, driven mostly by the prices of staple food,” said Ben Mungyereza, the executive director of UBOS.

Rwanda has also seen a rise in its inflation rate from 3 per cent in August to 3.7 per cent last month. The increase was a result of increases in the prices of food, housing, electricity and transport costs.

“The urban inflation was fuelled by a 5.6 per cent rise in prices of food and non-alcoholic beverages, a 10 per cent increase in the prices of  alcoholic beverages, tobacco and narcotics and a 5.7 per cent increase in the cost of  housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels,” Rwanda’s National Institute of Statistics said.

Tanzania and Burundi saw a marginal drop in their cost of living thanks to a fall in the food prices due to the August harvests in both countries.  Burundi’s inflation dipped by 0.1 per cent from 4.2 per cent in August.

Burundi’s Institute of Economic Studies and Statistics said the drop was because of improved production of some crops, which slowed food price rises in local markets.

The outlook for the country however remains bleak as several donors have pulled out funding, which will put pressure on the country’s budget. The political unrest since April has increased costs of essential commodities such as food, transportation and energy.

The statistics bureau said that the drop in maize and beans prices, one of the main staple crops, slowed food price inflation to 3.8 per cent in September, from 4.6 per cent a month earlier.

Tanzania saw a 0.3 percentage points dip in its inflation to 6.1 per cent in September.

National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) Director Ephraim Kwesigabo said inflation rose 0.1 per cent month-on-month in September from 0.02 per cent in August.

“The country saw a successful harvest in August that slowed down the food price rises,” Mr Kwesigabo said.

Kenya recorded a marginal rise in inflation to 5.97 per cent in September, from 5.84 per cent a month earlier, driven by a rise in food prices and fuel costs.

Central Bank Governor Dr Patrick Njoroge however feels confident that the inflation levels are within the bank’s band.

“Our inflation target is 5 per cent and there is scope for it to fall below that,” Dr Njoroge said.

September saw a marginal drop in energy prices, water and rent helping slow down the impact of higher food prices.

Analyst at AIB Capital in a research note predict that the inflation rate will stabilise between 6.03 per cent and 6.18 per cent for the next three months.