ZIMBABWE: Private imports easing food shortages
JOHANNESBURG, 11 August 2009 (IRIN): Zimbabwes food insecurity is being eased by private imports but prices remain high, making basic commodities unaffordable to many of the few people who have a job, said the Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS NET) Food Security Outlook released on 7 August.
Food security has greatly improved since the 2008-09 season, when nearly 7 million people were receiving food assistance, compared with projections for the 2009-10 period, when an estimated 2 million to 2,4 million people will require aid.
The UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and UN World Food Programme (WFP) Crop and Food Assessment Mission forecast the 2009 cereal harvest at 1,3 million tons, compared to 690.000 tons in 2008.
A better harvest, lifting import duties on basic commodities, and the dollarization of the economy have ameliorated (forbedret) food scarcity, the FEWS NET report said. The Zimbabwe dollar, which was fuelling hyperinflation, was discontinued earlier this year.
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