Zimbabwe was self-sufficient in wheat in 2022
Bindura wheat farm, 88 km northeast of Zimbabwe's capital Harare, on October 10, 2022, a record year for the harvest of this cereal.
AP - Tsvangirayi Mukwazhi
Text by: RFI Follow
1 min
We sometimes forget that Zimbabwe is an agricultural powerhouse.
The country recorded its highest wheat harvest in 2022, 375,000 tons, which makes it self-sufficient.
A unique performance in Africa.
In the current context where African countries are suffering from the absence or high cost of Russian and Ukrainian wheat, Zimbabwe stands out with a proactive policy.
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300 million dollars is what Zimbabwe will save this year, as it no longer needs to import wheat to meet its needs.
The harvest increased by 13% in 2022 compared to the previous year, breaking a record half a century old.
The areas sown have increased by 10% and above all the State has set up, via a public body, the Grain Marketing Board, a policy for the distribution of fertilizers and the purchase of crops which has won over farmers.
Still, if the country can boast of being a unique example in Africa for wheat, all is not rosy.
The Grain Marketing Board has the worst difficulty paying farmers.
Less than a quarter of the crops have been purchased, despite government assurances and the release of emergency funds.
In addition, the maize sector, the main cereal consumed in the country, is also progressing, but remains insufficient to meet national needs.
Overall, agricultural yields in Zimbabwe remain below the African average, according to some experts.
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Zimbabwe
Agriculture and Fishing