Bumper crops expected in Sahel

A bumper crop is anticipated in the Sahel with record harvests in the main producing countries of the region, according to a summary of the latest FAO/GIEWS report ‘Preliminary Assessment of 1998 cereal production in Western Africa’ received by IRIN today. The report, which covers the findings of joint FAO/CILSS Crop Assessment Missions in the Sahel, was presented during the annual meeting of the network for Prevention of Food Crises in the Sahel organised by Club du Sahel and CILSS in Dakar in early December. The report estimates the 1998 aggregate cereal production of the nine CILSS countries at a record 10.6 million mt, which is 31 percent higher than in 1997 and 17 percent above the average of the last five years, the summary says. Record crops are anticipated in Chad, Mali and Niger. Above-average output is anticipated in The Gambia, while output is close to average in Burkina Faso and Senegal but below average in Cape Verde and Mauritania.