DUSHANBE, November 5, Asia-Plus -- The Dushanbe municipal authorities discussed issues related to recent increase in prices of some basic food products at a November 3 meeting presided over by Dushanbe mayor Mahmadsaid Ubaidulloyev.

Shavkat Saidov, a spokesman for the Dushanbe mayor, said the meeting participants included heads of the Dushanbe markets and companies dealing with delivery of food products to the country.    

The capital mayor expressed concern about rising prices of a number of basic food products and set tasks to resolve the problem of monopoly of prices on the consumer market.  

Ubaidulloyev also charged heads of the Dushanbe markets to take adequate efforts to ensure organization of sound competition for producers of farm produce, the spokesman said.  Heads of markets are also to provide bringing in of products to the markets through using domestic reserves and bank loans, and thereby promote reduction in prices of basic food products on the markets.

The mayor also recommended entrepreneurs dealing with delivery of wheat flour to the Dushanbe markets from the country’s regions and abroad to take measures to regulate the prices in order that wholesale prices of flour would not exceed 106-107 somonis for a 50-kilograms sack of flour before the end of this year and selling prices on markets would not be more than 108-110 somonis.     

            The market administrations were also charged to establish shops for gross sale of wheat flour.   

The mayor also ordered the Dushanbe finance directorate to build not less than 30 million somonis into the city’s budget for 2008 for government purchase of grain and wheat flour.