New rubbish collection fees for Maputo.

Maputo city council has announced the introduction of new rubbish collection fees as of January 2007, the daily newspaper Noticias reports. The present monthly flat rate of 20 meticais de nova familha per household will be replaced by a variable tariff that is linked to the amount of electricity consumed on the principle that polluters pay. Under the new system private citizens will pay 15 centavos per kilowatt hour of electricity consumed. The new fees are to remain unchanged for two years before increasing to 20 centavos per kilowatt hour for households. Instead companies will pay a flat rate of 150 meticais per month, which will increase to 200 meticais per month in 2009.

The new fees are part of an attempt to overhaul the waste management system in the city, which generates an estimated 1,140 tonnes of rubbish per day. The tax will continue to be attached to the monthly electricity bill to facilitate collection. It is not clear how the city council proposes to charge households that are not connected to the electricity grid.