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The Ministry of Commerce and Industry (MoCI) has launched a number of initiatives to curb unjustified price hike of food commodities during holy month of Ramadan, said a top official.
“On the occasions like Ramadan, when demand of food commodities surge may lead to unjustified price hike of some consumables,” said Dr. Mohamed Ahmed Al Bohashem Al Sayed, Director of Quality Licensing and Market Control Department at the MoCI.
Speaking to Qatar TV recently, he said to ensure price stability, the Ministry launched a number of initiatives ahead of blessed month, including the joint national initiative to encourage local production and subsidise sheep meat prices.
Speaking to Qatar Radio yesterday, Al Sayed said that under the initiative, which was launched on March 18, so far about 4,800 sheep have been sold.
He said that MoCI, under which Consumer Protection Department falls, deployed a dedicated team of inspectors for conducting inspection campaigns at food outlets across the country to ensure the compliance of the provisions of consumer protection law.
Al Sayed urged consumers to report to the Ministry of Commerce and Industry through its communication channels if they come across any violations by commercial outlets. He said that the Ministry is keen to provide all types of food commodities and services to consumer at reasonable prices.
The Ministry of Commerce and Industry, in coordination with the Ministry of Municipality and Widam Food Company (Widam), launched the joint national initiative to encourage local production and subsidised sheep meat prices for the blessed month of Ramadan.
The sales started on March 18, and will continue until the end of the holy month. The initiative aims to ensure the availability of sheep meat to citizens during Ramadan at affordable prices, and to create a balance between supply and demand to ensure stable market prices. Widam is providing about 30,000 local sheep to be sold at reduced prices to citizens (two sheep per citizen).
The Ministry of Commerce and Industry also launched an initiative to provide over 900 commodities at discount prices during Ramadan, in coordination with major sales outlets, from March 12 until the end of the holy month.
The initiative comes within the framework of the Ministry’s continued keenness over the past years to launch such initiatives by providing the needs of citizens and residents for consumer goods at reduced prices during this holy month, as spending on the purchase of food and consumer goods increases.
