Monitoring Policy Making at the United Nations |
| ||||||||||||
NGOs to Import Food -Global Policy Forum- NGOs NGOs to Import Food
allAfrica
July 12, 2002
The government has been forced to allow non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and the private sector to play a greater role in the importation of food as the food crisis wreaks havoc across the country. The latest United Nations Humanitarian Report on Zimbabwe says two NGOs have already obtained licenses to import food.
"Plan International report that they have imported 2 117 tonnes of maize and are planning to import another 31 000 tonnes," the report says. "Oxfam (GB) has obtained a permit allowing a maximum of 10 000 tonnes of food per month," it says.
The report also says that discussions are currently on-going between government and the UN regarding ways of engaging the private sector in humanitarian assistance efforts to alleviate the crippling food shortage.
The government has been under sustained pressure since a meeting between UN secretary-general Kofi Annan and President Mugabe at the World Food Summit in Rome last month to abandon the Grain Marketing Board's monopoly on grain imports.
"Currently a working group composed of major donors, government, bank representatives, business representatives and the UN are drafting a proposed format for this programme, which will be presented to the relevant government ministries in the second week of July," the report says.
Diplomatic sources said major food donors threatened to withdraw aid to Zimbabwe unless government removed constraints which prevented the private sector from grain importation to help over six million Zimbabweans facing starvation.
The UN is proposing to establish a foreign exchange facility with the aid of the international community from which licensed firms could borrow to pay for grain imports.
Prior to the March 9/11 presidential election government banned NGOs and other private institutions from delivering food to needy people arguing that it would be used for political purposes. Food imports to fill the 2001/2003 production years' cereal deficit of 1,86 million tonnes is still well below needs.
The report said as of June 30 total cereal imports of 270 400 tonnes had been brought into the country and that would cover less than two months of Zimbabwe's consumption requirement of 25 000 tonnes a week.
"The remaining nine months' cereal needs for the country to get to the next harvest have not yet been addressed," the report said.
"Government has only indicated that it was going to parliament to request a budget revision in order to secure more funds for purchase of food."
Contrary to statements by Lands and Agriculture minister Joseph Made that the country did not need to import wheat, the report said the government had such plans in place.
"Government has assessed the situation and plans to import 35 000 tonnes of wheat to meet the shortfall for the 2001/2 marketing season," the report said.
The report said yields of up to 96 000 tonnes were expected from the current winter crop, leaving a deficit of 324 000 tonnes next year.
More Information on NGOs and Global Actors
FAIR USE NOTICE: This page contains copyrighted material the use of which has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. Global Policy Forum distributes this material without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. We believe this constitutes a fair use of any such copyrighted material as provided for in 17 U.S.C § 107. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond fair use, you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.
