The government on Thursday, July 7 announced new measures that will see the prices of bread and maize flour go down in the coming days.
In a statement by the government spokesperson, Col (Rtd) Cyrus Oguna, the government revealed that it had found new markets from which it will import wheat products from in less than a month.
Further, it stated that it had lowered the importation tax on wheat in a bid to encourage business owners to import the product more and eventually lower the cost of bread production.
Regarding the prices of maize flour that have spiked to over Ksh230 for a 2kg packet, the government stated that it had removed the importation tax on all non Genetically Modified Organism (GMO) maize in addition to the waived levies that were announced by Agriculture Cabinet Secretary, Peter Munya, on May 30.
"As government, we are concerned about the cost of living and we are doing everything possible to bring down the cost of commodities prices and to cushion Kenyans," Oguna stated.
Another measure the government is taking is offering fuel subsidies to reduce the skyrocketing cost of living.
"These measures will bring the cost of flour and bread down in the next few days once imported maize arrives in the country until a period when we start harvesting what is already in the Kenyan farms," read Oguna's statement in part.
However, the government did not announce the exact changes in prices that will be effected in the new efforts to make life more bearable for Kenyans.
The announcement came barely hours after various civil society groups petitioned President Uhuru Kenyatta to lower the cost of living in the country.
In their petition, they accused the Jubilee administration of doing nothing about the rising cost of living and poor management of public funds and the bloated public debt.
"We the people of Kenya demand a comprehensive public audit of the Jubilee regime and its impact on the ordinary citizens be initiated and the results be made public so that those culpable of our woes can be held accountable.
"We also demand immediate lowering of the prices of food and basic commodities, and full implementation of Mwananchi budget," read a statement by Social Justice Centres Working Group.
