The Chamber of Commerce has urged the Central Bank and the Ministry of Finance to offer dollars to traders at a lower rate.

Currently, the bank sells dollar at 87 pounds, a rate businesspeople say is unaffordable and should be reduced.

Ladu Lukak, Deputy Chairman, says this will allow traders to import enough food commodities for sale at affordable prices.

Mr Lukak said subsidizing basic goods will help in regulating market prices.

“Because for us in the market we have a policy that if every day there are goods entering the country or every month, the prices will come down because a trader would say his goods may get spoiled or expired,” he told Eye Radio. “So he will think about selling them even if at lower prices.”

However, a civil society activist urged the Central Bank and the Ministry Finance over the weekend to stop auctioning hard currency to traders and commercial banks.

Edmond Yakani on Monday said the two institutions should buy essential commodities in bulk and sell them to the traders at subsidized prices.

Mr Lukak agrees that the auctioning of the dollars to the commercial banks only worsened the economic situation.

But he believes that giving the dollars directly to traders might help improve the economic situation.