Good Rainfall has generally favoured the main 2002 sorghum and millet crops, for harvest from October. However, heavy rains were reported to have caused some damage in some districts of Hajja, Ta’iz and Ibb. Cereal production in 2001 is estimated at about 700 000 tonnes, about 1 percent above the level of the previous year.
Breeding conditions for locusts are expected to be favourable in areas of recent rainfall along the Red Sea coast but less favourable in the interior where it was mainly dry.
Imports of cereals in 2002 - mainly wheat - are estimated at about 2.4 million tonnes, same level as last year.