By Ali Twaha
Onion prices in the market have surged over the past year, with the cost of a kilogram rising to sh5,875 in May 2024 from sh3,172 in May 2023, representing an 85% jump according to data from the Uganda Bureau of Statistics (Ubos).
On a monthly basis, the price of a kilogram of onions edged up to sh5,875 in May from sh5,852 in April according to the national average retail prices by Ubos.
Godfrey Magoma, senior statistician at Ubos told New Vision that onion prices have skyrocketed in the market due to a severe supply shortage.
He said the combination of seasonality and low supply has led to a significant increase in prices.
“When supply is good, prices tend to decrease. But right now, supply is low, and that’s driving up prices,” Magoma said.
“If you look at the data from last month, prices have been steadily increasing, indicating a shortage of onions in the market. This means wherever the onions are coming from, the supply is low.”
In the annual period under review, a kilogram of passion fruit increased to sh6,749 from sh5,742, pineapple increased to sh1,612 from sh1,518 whereas fresh cassava dropped to sh824 per kilo from sh1,101.
