BURKINA FASO (29 May)
The rainy season has started on time in the south and southwest, where the first significant rains were registered in early April. They progressed northwards in May and covered almost the entire country during the last dekad. Sowing of millet and sorghum is underway in the south, west and south-west. Elsewhere, land preparation is underway.
Final estimates of the 2002 cereal production indicate a record harvest of 3.12 million tonnes, which is 22 percent above the average of the last five years. As a result, the overall food supply situation is satisfactory. However, the returnees and refugees from Côte d’Ivoire as well as people living in the food-deficit Northern and Sahelian areas will continue to need food assistance.