Gov't in plea for food aid as drought bites

With 3.7 million people at risk of food shortages due to drought, the government of Tanzania has appealed to donors for 100,000 tonnes of relief food. "The food shortage is acute and widespread," the prime minister, Edward Lowassa, said on Monday at a donor meeting in Dodoma, the country's administrative capital. "May I, on behalf of the government of Tanzania, officially request you to consider the situation and assist," he said. Lowassa quoted a recent assessment by the National Food Security Information Team that showed that 3.7 million people needed 99,676 tonnes of relief food between February and April. "This is alarming and needs immediate attention," said Lowassa, who has visited several regions in central and northeastern parts of the severely drought-hit country. He said there were only 57,620 tonnes of food in the government's Strategic Grain Reserves. In January, Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete announced that some 613,000 people in the country would need 21,500 tonnes of relief food until the end of February. However, there were already fears that many more people could need relief food by the end of February, as reports of severe shortages continued to trickle in due to long dry spells and widespread failure of the short rains. Agriculture Ministry officials say short rains accounted for 30 percent of Tanzania's annual food harvest, with maize as the staple food. In late January, the government authorised a three-month tax exemption for the importation of maize to boost supplies in local markets because retail prices were rising sharply.