The quantities are very generous and exceed an individual’s nutritional needs.<sup>4</sup> As indicated in Table 2, these quantities generate about 4,570 calories per person per day—more than double the level recommended by the WHO or the FAO. Initially, eight food products were made available under this system: flour, wheat, barley, rice, oil, sugar, tea and salt. But the list gradually increased over the years, to include items like pasta, coffee, tomato paste, milk for children, and others.

**Table 2: Food Subsidies and Quotas (2008-2012)**

||Subsidized price<br>(Libyan Dinars<br>per kg*)|Market price<br>(Libyan Dinars<br>per kg*)|Subsidy (percent<br>of the market<br>price)|Quota|Enforced (in kilo|grams* per pers|on per mont|h)|Generated<br>calories<br>(per<br>person per|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|||||2008|2009|2010|2011|2012|day)|
|Flour for<br>individuals|0.090|1.030|91|3.00|3.00|3.00|3.00|3.00|407|
|Flour for<br>bakeries|0.037|0.959|96|12.00|12.00|12.00|12.00|12.00|1628|
|Yeast for<br>bakeries|1.350|5.345|75|not subsidized|not subsidized|not subsidized|0.06|0.06|...|
|Semolina|0.080|0.911|91|1.00|1.00|1.00|1.00|1.00|137|
|Rice|0.140|1.559|91|2.50|2.50|2.50|2.50|2.50|347|
|Sugar|0.250|1.318|81|not subsidized|not subsidized|not subsidized|2.00|2.00|1067|
|Tea|1.500|5.097|71|not subsidized|not subsidized|not subsidized|0.20|0.20|13|
|Pasta|0.200|1.394|86|1.50|1.50|1.50|1.50|1.50|206|
|Vegetable oil|0.600|3.402|82|not subsidized|not subsidized|not subsidized|1.50|1.50|173|
|Tomatopaste|0.600|2.141|72|not subsidized|not subsidized|not subsidized|1.00|1.00|433|
|Milk for children|7.500|12.250|39|not subsidized|not subsidized|not subsidized|3.20|3.20|...|
|Milk, condensed|0.975|2.622|63|not subsidized|not subsidized|not subsidized|1.23|1.23|159|
|* For vegetable oil|the unit is liter|||||||||

Source: Information provided by Libyan Authorities during World Bank missions; FAO (2003) and World Bank staff calculations.

Despite some attempts to control the food subsidy system, significant leakages and abuse are believed to occur. Individuals need to be members of a cooperative to be able to shop there. However, individuals are also able to buy these goods on the free market at liberalized prices, so that not all Libyans are cooperative members, particularly among wealthier households. Nonetheless, while there are no centralized membership records or other mechanisms to control “double-dipping”, Libyan authorities estimate that the total number of cooperative members in the country exceeds the population size, suggesting that abuses of the quota system are widespread.

Energy subsidies were also introduced in 1971 and are currently administered by the National Oil Corporation under the authority of the Ministry of Oil. They include five products: gasoline, diesel, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), kerosene and electricity. Between 1995 and 2000, subsidies on these products were already on the rise increasing from around 234 million dinars in 1995 to 404 million in 2000 and with the largest subsidies accorded to diesel and electricity (Waniss and Erling, 2007). But the largest increases occurred during the 2000s before the revolution because of the inability of the regime to increase retail prices during the global rise in oil prices. Energy subsidies continued to increase after the revolution reaching an estimated peak of 6.3 billion dinars in 2012. Energy products are universally

> 4The quantities provided within the quota system are not negligible. For example, a family of four is entitled to the following quotas at subsidized prices each month: 8 kg of sugar, 800 gr. of tea, 4 kg of tomato paste, 6 liters of vegetable oil, 10 kg of rice, 12 kg of flour, 4 kg of semolina and 6 kg of pasta. These quantities are not small and can cover well above the total amount of calories necessary for a family of four for a period of one month.

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