TANZANIA, UNITED REPUBLIC OF (11 February)
Harvesting of the 2004/05 short “Vuli” season cereal crops in the bi-modal rainfall areas has just started. The overall outlook is poor due to erratic rainfall. Seed shortages were also reported to have limited the season’s planting.
The 2003/04 cereal crop, mainly maize, is estimated at about 4.8 million tonnes, more than 19 percent above the previous year’s crop and the previous five years average. The overall food supply situation is satisfactory with stable or declining cereal prices in central, east coast, lake and northern Tanzania. Some 12 districts in northern and central Tanzania, mainly in the regions of Arusha, Kilimanjaro, Dodoma, Morogoro, Shinyanga and Singida are reported to face varying degrees of food insecurity.