afrol News, 3 February - Zimbabwe’s minister of Agriculture says the country needs to urgently import 500,000 tonnes of maize to avert corn shortages following an extended dry spell that has adversely affected crop production.

Minister Joseph Made said he has informed the Finance Ministry to start importing 500,000 tonnes of grain to avert the crisis. Zimbabwe has not had grain reserves for more than a decade.

Farmers’ organisations in Zimbabwe said this year’s corn crop is likely to fail because prolonged dry spells have withered plants beyond recovery.

According to the Farmers’ organisation, corn, potato and bean crops in most of Zimbabwe’s 10 provinces had been affected by intermittent drought.

The country's coalition administration said it needs at least $10 billion to rebuild the shattered economy but has struggled to raise funds to finance its needs. Grain imports will exert added pressure on its already scant resources.

Critics say President Robert Mugabe, who has been in power since independence from Britain in 1980, escalated the country's economic collapse by seizing the white-owned farms.

Mr Mugabe in turn says drought has caused food shortages and that Western sanctions which were imposed on his government as punishment for the land seizures, worsened the situation.

By staff writer

© afrol News

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