Charcoal sellers in Jos record boom in business

The cold weatherand the acuteshortage of kerosene have combined to shore up the fortunes of charcoal sellers in Jos and its environs in Plateau State.A correspondent of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), who visited the Jos Central Market on Sunday, observed a frenzy of activities at the charcoal section as buyers struggled to purchase the ``essential commodity''.With the rising demand, the sellers have effected a slight increase in the prices of charcoal with a bag selling for N1,200 instead of the usual N1,000.Mrs Laraba Mathew, Chairperson, Charcoal Sellers Association, Jos, told NAN that patronage had ``doubled'' in recent times.``We now have more customers than we had in the past few months. But we have also told our members not to cash in on the situation to exploit anyone,'' she said.Mathew said, however, that more customers were usually recorded during the rainy season.``During the wet season, we used to sell a bag for between N1,300 and N1500. That is because producers complain of the difficulty in sourcing the product.``At that time, the roads are usually bad and that makes it difficult for us to transport the charcoal from the bush to the market,'' she explained.Mathew told NAN that most charcoal suppliers get their supply from Zaranda and Namurdu in Bauchi State, as well as Jingir and Gomou in Plateau.She called on government to ensure that all charcoal sellers were brought to the central market, so as to ensure proper monitoring and sanitation.A buyer at the market, Mrs Jumai Musa, told NAN that she had to resort to charcoal for cooking because of the scarcity of kerosene, especially now that a lot cooking would have to be done during the Christmas festivities.
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