An estimated 14,000 rural Swaziland villagers have run out of food and thousands more are at risk unless the tiny kingdom urgently receives at least 23,000 mt of maize to offset deficits caused by the floods early this year.
News reports quoted the Swaziland ministry of agriculture as saying there was an urgent need for emergency food aid, especially maize. The ministry forecast national maize production for 1999/2000 at 71,000 mt - a 37 percent drop on the previous year’s output. The national requirement is 1.55 million mt.
The ministry added that a total of 1,937 vulnerable homesteads (13,556 people) were identified as requiring immediate food aid until the next harvest in May 2001.
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