Rainfall in late December and much of January was abundant, covering most parts of the country. This provided much needed relief for crops, particularly in western and eastern areas which received little rains during the first two decades of December. Crop growing conditions have now improved substantially. However, as a result of the poor December rains and subsequent late planting of crops, especially in Free State, Mpumalanga and Northwest Provinces, maize production is expected to be reduced by about 15 per cent, compared to last year. Furthermore, the first dekad of February was marked by above average temperatures and below average rainfall over much of the country at a time when a large part of the maize is coming into the critical pollination stage. A prolonged dry spell in the coming weeks would seriously affect this portion of the crop.
However, as a result of the recent good rains, dams have been filled and soil moisture raised, and particularly in commercial farming areas, the availability of irrigation will help cushion the impact of a drought. Nonetheless, an extended drought could lead to a crop of up to 20 percent less compared to last year. This would seriously reduce the country�s ability to export maize, particularly to needy countries in the sub-region.
The overall food supply situation continues to be satisfactory. The wheat crop harvested in November 1997 was above-average at about 2.3 million tonnes but much below last year�s good crop. The aggregate 1997 cereal crop is estimated at 11.9 million tonnes, which was also above average but lower than the previous year�s bumper crop.