July 26, 2007

Zimbabwe imports 200,000 tonnes corn to fill supply shortage

Zimbabwe has purchased 200,000 tonnes of corn from Tanzania and will also import the same quantity from Malawi to fill up shortages due to the country's poor harvests.

The World Food Programme (WFP) and the Food and Agricultural Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) said at least one out of every three persons in Zimbabwe depends on food support from abroad.

The country has already imported 400 tonnes of corn from Zambia and Malawi earlier this year. As of 2001, Zimbabwe is not able to feed their people with their own stocks due to alleged "government malfunction" by President Robert Mugabe. Mugabe purportedly chased away white farmers from their farms to replace them with inexperienced black farmers. This action has pundits say led to multiple failed harvests.