Malawi maize exports grow despite ban
Despite the national maize export ban effected last year, total informal cross-border maize exports between April 2012 and March 2013 grew 18 percent higher than the five-year average.
According to Famine Early Warning Systems Network’s (Fewsnet) April to September 2012 Malawi Food Security Outlook, nearly all of the maize exports in the given period were recorded at the Malawi-Tanzania border points of Mbirima and Songwe in the Northern Region.
According to Ministry of Trade, the export of maize and maize products requires an export licence issued by the ministry. This is in accordance with the Control of Goods Act chapter 18:08 of the Laws of Malawi.
Malawi Government recently condemned the practice of buying farm produce from local farmers with the purpose of hoarding it for illegal export later.
Unscrupulous traders have mounted scales in most corners of the country, especially in rural areas cheating farmers to sell their produce at lower prices.
Civil Society Agriculture Network (Cisanet) recently also cast its weight behind the maize export ban effected by government, arguing that maize as a strategic crop needs to be handled well.
“Maize is a very strategic crop in as far as food security is concerned. As such, traders need to be more disciplined in how they handle this commodity. Those that would like to export maize in the future need to have licences and should remit to Malawi Revenue Authority (MRA) and government all the dues on their exports,” said Cisanet national director, Tamani Nkhono-Mvula.
In terms of cross-border maize imports, however, the report indicated that during the same period, Malawi imported 14 766 metric tonnes, 222 percent lower than the five-year average.
“The reduction in maize grain imports during this period reflects the absence of any imports at the Malawi-Mozambique border point of Muloza since July 2012. During a recent Fewsnet and Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security (MOAFS) assessment in March, informal imports appeared to be resuming at Muloza,” reads the report in part.
The report, however, indicated that informal cross-border trade between Malawi and neighboring Mozambique and Zambia is expected to follow normal seasonal trends between April and September despite the maize export ban.
The second round crop estimates released by MoAFS in April projected a gross domestic maize production of about 3.68 million metric tonnes, which is 1.5 percent higher than 2011/12 production levels and would result in a domestic maize surplus of approximately 740 000 metric tonnes.
However, Fewsnet reports that based on reports of extended dry spells between mid-February and March and a recent field assessment in the Central and Northern regions, the upcoming third round crop estimates will better capture the impact of this dryness on crops, and maize production estimates will likely decrease.
