ZIMBABWE: Doubt over govt's ability to import sufficient maize as hunger figures rise

[ This report does not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations]

JOHANNESBURG, 5 Oct 2005 (IRIN) - A senior food security expert in Zimbabwe says the government will have to work more closely with the international community if it hopes to feed millions of people facing shortages this year.

The EU official, who wished to remain anonymous, said that despite a "significant effort" by the government to import urgently needed maize in recent months, there remained "much uncertainty" over whether it would meet the country's requirements.

Zimbabwean authorities have refused to appeal for international aid to stave off widespread hunger, insisting instead that the government has the capacity to import the 1.2 million mt needed to fill the food gap. Aid agencies estimate that up to four million people will go hungry until the next harvest.

"The latest figures show that between April and September, 480,000 mt of maize was brought in, mainly from South Africa. More recently, however, there appears to be a decline in the import quantity," the official told IRIN on Wednesday.

Sydney Mhishi, Zimbabwe's director of social welfare, reportedly told a parliamentary committee on Tuesday that the government was gearing up to provide 2.2 million people with emergency food aid.

According to the official Herald newspaper, the elderly, orphans and the sick will benefit from the food handouts. "The rest of the country's population can afford to buy maize, which is being imported," Mhishi was quoted as saying.

Aid agencies were also concerned that the reluctance of the Grain Marketing Board (GMB), the official purchasing agent, to include them in its distribution plans was likely to complicate relief operations.

"At the moment there is very little known about how the food aid will be distributed, which areas or groups will be prioritised, and how the government plans to get the food to communities located, at times, 80 km from the depots," the source explained.

Another question was whether Harare could afford to import more maize after its recent payment to the International Monetary Fund (IMF). In a surprise move the country managed to scrape together a substantial portion of its debt and avoid expulsion from the Fund.

"We do know the government has been looking for forex to pay the IMF, but whether or not it can pull together additional funds remains to be seen," the Harare-based expert said. "We can speculate that perhaps some private dealers in South Africa are ready to take a risk, with the hope of getting their money back."

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