| Area: | 741 000 sq.km |
| Climate: | Tropical wet-dry, one rainy season (November-April) |
| Population: | 10.240 million (1997 estimate); G.N.P. per caput: U.S.$ 380 (1997) |
| Specific characteristics of the country: | Low-income food-deficit country; land-locked country |
| Logistics: | Imports through Dar es Salaam (Tanzania); inadequate rail and road connections |
| Major foodcrops: | Maize, roots, tubers |
| Marketing year: | May/April; Lean season: March-May |
| Share of cereals in total calorie intake: | 70 percent |
CURRENT SITUATION
The output of the 1998 irrigated wheat crop, now being harvested, is estimated at 71 000 tonnes, 11 000 tonnes more than last year and above average. Sowings of the coarse grain crop, to be harvested from April 1999, will start with the onset of the rainy season that is about to start.
Reflecting El Niño-related weather anomalies, cereal output in 1998 dropped by 37 percent to 709 000 tonnes. For maize, the main staple of the country, production was estimated at some 548 000 tonnes, 43 percent lower than last year and 58.6 percent below the five-year average.
The food supply situation for the 1998/99 marketing year is expected to be tight. Maize prices have increased steadily since May. Against a total cereal import requirement of 660 000 tonnes, commercial imports are forecast at 364 000 tonnes leaving an uncovered deficit of 296 000 tonnes, which includes 45 000 tonnes of emergency food assistance. So far food aid pledges amount to 15 000 tonnes, of which 12 000 tonnes have been delivered.
| Wheat | Rice | Coarse grains | Total | |
| Normal Production | 53 | 14 | 1 348 | 1 415 |
| Normal Imports | 35 | 4 | 65 | 104 |
| of which: Structural food aid | 25 | - | 45 | 70 |
| 1998/99 Domestic Availability | 81 | 5 | 673 | 759 |
| 1998 Production (rice in paddy terms) | 71 | 6 | 632 | 709 |
| 1998 Production (rice in milled terms) | 71 | 4 | 632 | 707 |
| Possible stock drawdown | 10 | 1 | 41 | 52 |
| 1998/99 Utilization | 122 | 28 | 1 269 | 1 419 |
| Food Use | 118 | 26 | 1 154 | 1 298 |
| of which: local purchase requirement | - | - | - | - |
| Non-food use | 4 | 2 | 115 | 121 |
| Exports or Re-exports | - | - | - | - |
| Possible stock build up | - | - | - | - |
| 1998/99 Import Requirement | 41 | 23 | 596 | 660 |
| Anticipated commercial imports | 41 | 15 | 308 | 364 |
| Food aid needs | - | 8 | 288 | 296 |
| Current Aid Position | ||||
| Food aid pledges | 6 | 1 | 8 | 15 |
| of which: Delivered | 6 | 1 | 5 | 12 |
| Donor-financed purchases | - | - | - | - |
| of which: for local use | - | - | - | - |
| for export | - | - | - | - |
| Estimated Per Caput Consumption (kg/Year) | 12 | 3 | 113 | 127 |
| Indexes | ||||
| 1998 production as % of normal: | 50 | |||
| 1998/99 import requirement as % of normal: | 635 | |||
| 1998/99 food aid requirement as % of normal: | 423 |
