In an effort to reduce the cost of goods sold on shop shelves throughout the country, the country’s consumer watchdog will embark on a pricing review of stevedoring and handling services this year. According to the Minister for Rural and Economic Development, Joseph Lelang, this price review exercise will be carried out by the Independent Consumer and Competitions Commission (ICCC) in early 2025. “This should lead to a significant reduction in the rates and charges imposed by the stevedoring and handling businesses at declared ports throughout the country,” said the minister. “This is important, and we expect that through this review, it should lead to a reduction in the high-cost structure in our country that often find their way into the final prices of goods sold in our shops, causing inflation.” Stevedoring and handling services involve the cargo operations, which is the loading and unloading of cargoes on ships. It also includes the other various dockside functions that carries its own costs, which are usually then passed on to the consumers in the mark up costs in shops. The good minister said the ICCC was allocated K3 million in the 2025 National Budget and will use this massive funding allocation to carry out this exercise plus other tasks that the ICCC will be undertaking this year.