Search
  1. Home
  2. Africa
  3. Southern Africa

Food security update

    JOHANNESBURG

    The Southern Africa Development Community’s (SADC) Food Security Unit forecasts an increased cereal harvest for the region this year.

    “Cereal production prospects for SADC are generally brighter than last year despite devastation caused by flooding in southern Mozambique and parts of South Africa, Swaziland, Botswana and Zimbabwe,” the report noted.

    The SADC update forecast a total cereal harvest of 23.79 million mt for the 1999/2000 season against last year’s 21.40 million mt.

    It said that maize production was expected to increase significantly in Zimbabwe and South Africa. Maize is the staple food in large parts of southern Africa. Production in South Africa is expected to reach 9.64 million mt against last year’s 7.50 million mt. In Zimbabwe, a harvest of 2.15 million mt is forecast, against last year’s 1.52 million mt.

    SADC said that production increases were also expected in Zambia and Namibia. In Malawi a maize output of 2.48 million mt is predicted, only a percentage point down from last year. A 3 percent decline is expected in Mozambique.

    SADC said that a regional maize surplus of 1.14 million mt was projected.

    This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions

    Share this article

    Our ability to deliver compelling, field-based reporting on humanitarian crises rests on a few key principles: deep expertise, an unwavering commitment to amplifying affected voices, and a belief in the power of independent journalism to drive real change.

    We need your help to sustain and expand our work. Your donation will support our unique approach to journalism, helping fund everything from field-based investigations to the innovative storytelling that ensures marginalised voices are heard.

    Please consider joining our membership programme. Together, we can continue to make a meaningful impact on how the world responds to crises.

    Become a member of The New Humanitarian

    Support our journalism and become more involved in our community. Help us deliver informative, accessible, independent journalism that you can trust and provides accountability to the millions of people affected by crises worldwide.

    Join