Zanzibar’s value-added tax on imported sugar will be abolished to make life more affordable during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan.
The president also told traders there was “no excuse” to raise food prices.
Prices have soared in the past three months in the semi-autonomous archipelago of Tanzania and Zanzibar due to sugar shortages.
Their government claims that the decline in production is the cause.
During a market visit on Monday, Zanzibar President Hussein Ali Mwini said that although the government was fighting inflation, some unscrupulous traders were still manipulating the prices of locally produced cassava, fish, vegetables and fruits.
He said that the company is maintaining its sales at a high level.
“Stop unnecessary price hikes during Ramadan, which inconveniences most of the poor,” he said.
Zanzibar has a Muslim majority.
The month of Ramadan, when Muslims fast from dawn to dusk, is scheduled to begin in less than two weeks.