Record cereal production expected

Record cereal harvests for 1999 have been projected for nine arid West African countries, following a joint evaluation mission by the FAO and the Permanent Interstate Committee for Drought Control in the Sahel (CILSS). Documents published after a regional meeting held on 6-9 March evaluating food production in the Sahel puts the region’s aggregate cereal production at 11.5 million mt, an increase of 8 percent over 1998. Six CILSS member countries had record harvests: Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Gambia, Mali, Mauritania and Senegal. Niger’s production remained close to its previous record of 1998 whereas Chad’s is expected to have dropped by 9 percent in the same period. Guinea-Bissau produced less than in 1998 due to a military revolt there. Millet accounted for 47 percent of the 1999 cereal production, sorghum 27 percent, rice 14 percent, maize 10 percent and others 2 percent. The cereal production in Sahelian countries has risen steadily over the past 15 years. However, in each of the nine countries, some areas recorded food shortfalls, due to floods which swept through the region last year.