Drought hits southern Africa’s farmers, putting key maize supplies at risk

Published 2024년 3월 5일

Tridge summary

El Niño-induced dryness is threatening maize production in Southern Africa, particularly in South Africa, Zambia, and Zimbabwe, raising concerns about food insecurity. The drought has already caused significant crop damage, with Zambia losing nearly half of its maize production. Zimbabwe plans to import 1.1 million metric tons of maize over the next year to mitigate potential hunger risks. Despite the challenges, South Africa's harvest is expected to meet domestic needs and have some left for exports. Policymakers are urged to avoid export restrictions and maize price caps, ensure household-level support, and explore potential exports from countries like Mexico.

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

Original content

South Africa , Zambia and Zimbabwe have recently published reports indicating a potential decline in grain harvest because of intense El Niño-induced dryness. These developments could put the entire Southern Africa maize supply chain at risk, with Zambia and South Africa hard hit by heatwaves and dryness. The neighbouring small producers such as Zimbabwe, Botswana, Lesotho and Namibia are also struggling with dryness. Given that South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe are among the largest maize producers within the Southern Africa region, a potential decline in the harvest in these countries suggests there could be an increase in the risk of food insecurity. This would necessitate imports to meet the shortfall in the region's maize supplies. The dryness in an El Niño event is not unexpected in the Southern Africa region as this weather phenomenon is typically accompanied by dryness . The year started favourably, with excellent rains. But the dryness intensified from the end of January. ...

Source: Modernghana