1 00:00:00,320 --> 00:00:06,360 Speaker 1: The one fuel increase which absolutely reflects all of the 2 00:00:06,400 --> 00:00:10,160 Speaker 1: trouble happening in the world is paraffine, which is going 3 00:00:10,240 --> 00:00:14,160 Speaker 1: up by fifteen rand and sixty cents a liter as 4 00:00:14,280 --> 00:00:18,880 Speaker 1: of tomorrow. Because there is no fuel levee on the 5 00:00:19,040 --> 00:00:22,920 Speaker 1: paraffine price, it does not benefit from the three rand 6 00:00:22,960 --> 00:00:26,320 Speaker 1: elita drop in the fuel levee for the month of April. 7 00:00:27,160 --> 00:00:32,600 Speaker 1: Supercisumborto joins us now advocacy coordinator at the PEDA Meritzburg 8 00:00:32,680 --> 00:00:37,519 Speaker 1: Economic Justice and Dignity Group. Supercis a good afternoon. I 9 00:00:37,680 --> 00:00:40,559 Speaker 1: was doing a little bit of research last week around 10 00:00:40,760 --> 00:00:44,559 Speaker 1: this issue, and I was told that about two million 11 00:00:44,640 --> 00:00:49,199 Speaker 1: households in South Africa used paraffine as their main cooking 12 00:00:49,680 --> 00:00:54,000 Speaker 1: and heating source. So that's two million households that are 13 00:00:54,080 --> 00:00:57,800 Speaker 1: going to be really struggling having to pay fifteen rands 14 00:00:57,880 --> 00:01:00,680 Speaker 1: sixty elita more for paraffine. 15 00:01:01,720 --> 00:01:05,360 Speaker 2: Good afternoon, John, and to your listeners, and thank you 16 00:01:05,440 --> 00:01:09,959 Speaker 2: very much for the invite. It certainly is a hash 17 00:01:10,040 --> 00:01:17,080 Speaker 2: reality that we were faced with because for those thermonies, 18 00:01:17,120 --> 00:01:21,920 Speaker 2: for those households two two million and counting, there's no 19 00:01:22,319 --> 00:01:26,120 Speaker 2: there's no other way, There's there's no negotiation. If you 20 00:01:26,319 --> 00:01:28,960 Speaker 2: are going to have if you need to have food, 21 00:01:29,760 --> 00:01:31,680 Speaker 2: if you need to have a pad, the warm path, 22 00:01:32,240 --> 00:01:34,640 Speaker 2: you know, you've got to you've got to ensure that 23 00:01:35,760 --> 00:01:39,800 Speaker 2: you've got this fair amount of supply of paraffin and 24 00:01:40,200 --> 00:01:44,920 Speaker 2: then use that it's going up by that amount, it puts, 25 00:01:45,040 --> 00:01:49,080 Speaker 2: It puts the consumer and a severe string as if 26 00:01:49,160 --> 00:01:54,200 Speaker 2: things are uh a lot bad enough as it is 27 00:01:54,360 --> 00:01:57,040 Speaker 2: right now. So it is a worrisome picture. 28 00:01:59,040 --> 00:02:03,160 Speaker 1: Is any information about what the sort of average household 29 00:02:03,320 --> 00:02:07,080 Speaker 1: use is of paraffine? How many e liters a month? 30 00:02:07,600 --> 00:02:13,040 Speaker 1: So we're talking probably about families that might be subsisting 31 00:02:13,120 --> 00:02:16,040 Speaker 1: on a social grant or a social relief of distress 32 00:02:16,120 --> 00:02:18,800 Speaker 1: grant and maybe a little bit of extra money that 33 00:02:18,880 --> 00:02:22,720 Speaker 1: they're able to make by I don't know, a roadside 34 00:02:22,720 --> 00:02:25,239 Speaker 1: food store or something like that. But I'm trying to 35 00:02:25,320 --> 00:02:29,600 Speaker 1: understand how big the impact is going to be. 36 00:02:31,600 --> 00:02:37,040 Speaker 2: So perhaps just to provide a bit of context, Yeah, 37 00:02:37,280 --> 00:02:43,440 Speaker 2: it's important to note that in this household Affordability index 38 00:02:43,600 --> 00:02:46,520 Speaker 2: that we conduct each month, we look at the forty 39 00:02:46,560 --> 00:02:51,280 Speaker 2: four foot items that I essential for each family to have, 40 00:02:51,680 --> 00:02:54,600 Speaker 2: you know, order to ensure that there's a nutritious need 41 00:02:55,200 --> 00:02:58,440 Speaker 2: for at least four members, we calculate we use that 42 00:02:58,639 --> 00:03:04,680 Speaker 2: average of member family, and then we take that number 43 00:03:05,480 --> 00:03:11,880 Speaker 2: and we we we juxtapose it with the national minimum wage. 44 00:03:12,040 --> 00:03:16,799 Speaker 2: So saying that another age worker who ends a minimum 45 00:03:16,840 --> 00:03:21,880 Speaker 2: wage that entry level of which has moved now to 46 00:03:22,440 --> 00:03:26,040 Speaker 2: from twenty eight ranked seventy number ands per hour to 47 00:03:26,240 --> 00:03:31,960 Speaker 2: daty ranks twenty three sins per hour, that person is 48 00:03:31,960 --> 00:03:36,080 Speaker 2: going to end five thousand and seventy eight ranked sixty 49 00:03:36,080 --> 00:03:39,960 Speaker 2: four cents in March, much as of mych state one. 50 00:03:40,680 --> 00:03:45,800 Speaker 2: Now you take that number, you then you then placed 51 00:03:45,840 --> 00:03:50,920 Speaker 2: across this other age of food is calculated in our 52 00:03:50,920 --> 00:03:54,160 Speaker 2: basket for March, which was five thousand, three hundred and 53 00:03:54,200 --> 00:03:58,080 Speaker 2: twenty eight. So you already have this dischanger between the 54 00:03:58,560 --> 00:04:03,800 Speaker 2: ending versus the food basket itself. Then you take the 55 00:04:03,880 --> 00:04:09,040 Speaker 2: additional cost involved for a worker transport. Then there's water, 56 00:04:09,200 --> 00:04:14,240 Speaker 2: there's electricity, so you you will remove electricity from this 57 00:04:14,360 --> 00:04:18,920 Speaker 2: equation for for for for this two million household, but 58 00:04:19,960 --> 00:04:24,680 Speaker 2: you you have paraffin. It already means that they're there. 59 00:04:25,440 --> 00:04:32,320 Speaker 2: They are negative territory. Yeah, they author just stagged against them. 60 00:04:32,560 --> 00:04:37,640 Speaker 2: So on other age, we have not necessarily looked at 61 00:04:37,680 --> 00:04:40,680 Speaker 2: that too. In all honesty. We we will also rely 62 00:04:41,240 --> 00:04:44,760 Speaker 2: on some of our social partners to be running different service. 63 00:04:45,200 --> 00:04:52,120 Speaker 2: But we we would we would say, all things considered, 64 00:04:52,600 --> 00:04:55,080 Speaker 2: it would be arisome picture when you look at how 65 00:04:55,160 --> 00:04:57,760 Speaker 2: much they would have to spend on paraffine. 66 00:04:58,560 --> 00:05:02,880 Speaker 1: Are you aware of any campaign to get government to 67 00:05:03,120 --> 00:05:07,840 Speaker 1: perhaps subsidize the cost of paraffine, to reduce it in 68 00:05:07,920 --> 00:05:10,920 Speaker 1: some way to make it more affordable for those people 69 00:05:10,960 --> 00:05:12,640 Speaker 1: whom it is a primary source of fuel. 70 00:05:15,560 --> 00:05:22,000 Speaker 2: Look there that continuous cause on government to push the 71 00:05:22,080 --> 00:05:26,440 Speaker 2: most vulnerable of households, whether it's in the area of 72 00:05:26,560 --> 00:05:29,920 Speaker 2: energy supply, it's in the area of what does supply 73 00:05:30,240 --> 00:05:36,640 Speaker 2: because the understanding is that most of this household they 74 00:05:36,680 --> 00:05:42,279 Speaker 2: would spend about thirty five percent of their income pain 75 00:05:42,400 --> 00:05:49,680 Speaker 2: for this essentials what an electricity and then food becomes 76 00:05:50,160 --> 00:05:54,920 Speaker 2: this compromise, you know. And so it's on that basis 77 00:05:55,400 --> 00:06:01,880 Speaker 2: that we, as part of that partners would continuously called 78 00:06:01,920 --> 00:06:06,120 Speaker 2: for government to relook at the current formula, see how 79 00:06:06,160 --> 00:06:11,880 Speaker 2: it can be restractured so that it provides that form 80 00:06:11,920 --> 00:06:15,279 Speaker 2: of cushion to the most vulnerable of our households. In 81 00:06:15,279 --> 00:06:16,279 Speaker 2: South Africa. 82 00:06:16,800 --> 00:06:20,200 Speaker 1: Cuber season Borto is the advocacy coordinator at the peter 83 00:06:20,279 --> 00:06:23,000 Speaker 1: Merisburg Economic Justice and Dignity Group