Zimbabwe: Poor Grain Production Hurting The Economy

Published 2021년 1월 25일

Tridge summary

Zimbabwe has been dependent on food imports for the past 20 years, with grain imports alone costing the country over $600 million in 2020. The country's low agricultural productivity, particularly in maize, is contributing to poverty and unemployment, as well as imported inflation. The fast tracked Land Reform Program and government policy missteps have also impacted food security and production. The article suggests that the government should implement free market policies, direct agricultural policies towards small scale irrigation, and allow private sector investment in production. The article also highlights the need for land tenure reform and addressing pricing and viability concerns for farmers.

Disclaimer:The above summary was generated by Tridge's proprietary AI model for informational purposes.

Original content

Zimbabwe has been a net importer of food for the past 2 decades and the country's import bill has increasingly featured grain imports with maize imports averaging 1.1 million Metric Tonnes (MT) per year in the last 10 years, while wheat and soya beans account for 300 000MT and 150 000MT in import quantities respectively. National demand for maize stands at 2.1 million MT for industrial and domestic consumption. Imports for these three raw grain commodities cost the country at least US$600 million in 2020 alone, thereby surpassing fuel imports (at US$499 million in the same period). This is before processed cereals and other agricultural commodities are factored into the import equation. Over the years, the country has been even importing millions worth of fresh commodities such as onions, potatoes, apples, pears, grapes and other vegetable products which should ordinarily be uncompetitive to transport into the country. Yield per hectare for maize (the staple crop) remains very low ...

Source: All Africa