By Obiabin Onukwugha
Zimbabwean government has again imposed a ban on maize imports to boost local farmers.
Zimbabwe, which consumes about 1.8 million metric tons of maize annually, saw production fall to around 800,000 metric tons in 2023/24 from 2.3 million metric tons two years earlier as a result of harsh weather conditions propelled by El Nino droughts.
That crisis, it was gathered, prompted the government to temporarily lift import restrictions to ease food shortages.
Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Agriculture, Obert Jiri, told Reuters that the country has grown enough of its own this year to supply its millers after a bumper harvest.
“We assess the situation every day. We must protect local purchases from our local farmers,” Jiri said on Monday.
He revealed that this year’s recovery, combined with state support programmes such as the Pfumvudza smallholder scheme, has left the country with enough stocks, adding that the current surplus provides a rare opportunity to reinforce food security and reduce reliance on imports.
Independent analyst Paul Chidziva, however warned that Zimbabwe’s agriculture sector – which employs around 70% of the population – remains vulnerable to droughts and other extreme weather events exacerbated by climate change.
It would be recalled that Zimbabwe spent $300 million in scarce foreign currency importing maize in 2020 as successive droughts left more than half the population in need of food aid.