Zambia: Mulobezi’s motorists up in arms about lack of service stations

Motorists from the Zambian town Mulobezi have complained about the absence of a gas station in the area, with some drivers having to travel up to 200 kilometres just to refuel their vehicles, reports the Lusaka Times.

People from the region have made a request to the Ministry of Energy and the Energy Regulatory Board (ERB) for a service station to be set up in or near Mulobezi, a district in Zambia’s Western province.

As drivers are forced to travel 150 to 200 kilometres just to find a petrol station, many end up buying the fuel from the ‘black market’ for much higher prices, explained David Swaswa to Zandi newspaper.

“Fuel here in Mulobezi district is scarce to find. We buy it from either Livingstone or Sesheke districts and sometimes in neighbouring Namibia when we run out here. The commodity here is only found on the black market,” he said.

Mulobezi District Commisioner, Vivian Mubukwano, explained that the government did not have the necessary resources to solve all of the region’s economic difficulties, and appealed to the business community to partner with governing bodies to push for economic development, and find a viable solution. 

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