ZIMBABWE is set to import 1,4 million tonnes of maize this year to feed the nation following a poor agricultural season, a local economist has said.
BY TARISAI MANDIZHA
According to official statistics, the country consumes about 105 000 tonnes of maize per month.
Speaking at the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Zimbabwe (ICAZ) tax update seminar in Harare yesterday, economist John Robertson said the agricultural output for this year will be less than 500 000 tonnes of grain. “All the evidence suggests this year is going to be a very poor agriculture year. Will be very lucky to get 500 000 tonnes of maize this year. Approximately the country needs to import about 1,4 million tonnes of maize to feed the whole nation,” Robertson said.
He said government was hoping to get 1,5 million tonnes of maize this year but evidence on the ground was that only a quarter of the maize would be delivered.
Robertson said there was need for government to craft policies that can support agriculture production, which include enabling the 99-year lease agreements to be bankable so that farmers are able to access lines of credit among many others.
“We are witnessing the effect of becoming dependent on small-scale farmers to feed the nation. Small-scale farmers can feed their families and it is wrong to expect them to feed the nation,” he said.
“If Small scale farmers were given the title deeds for the land they could be successful, because they do have the skills and knowledge but they lack access to credit.”
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Robertson added that the move by government to remove land from the commercial market was very damaging for the nation.
“The country’s imports requirement averages one million tonnes a year, the government has agreed to import because we don’t have enough. But this money could have been used for other things. ” he said.
He said the maize producer price was too high. Robertson said the Grain Marketing Board was offering a price which was twice that of the international market.
The 99-year leases were offered by government to farmers during the land reform programme so that farmers could have full control over the land, with the agrarian reform targeted to positively transform the agricultural sector.
Some farmers secured the documents while thousands others remained apprehensive with offer letters as their only claim to land.
In 2014, the authorities issued A1 permits to small-holder farmers who got properties via land reform. The government recently stopped issuing the 99-year lease to land reform beneficiaries after private companies commissioned to survey farms pulled out over a $6 million debt.
According to the 2015 national Budget, the overall agricultural growth for 2015 was projected at 3,4%. “This is on the backdrop of government’s continued commitment to prioritise food security, active private sector participation in financing agriculture, and improvements in farming methods,” Finance minister Patrick Chinamasa said.
