The Government of Zambia has revoked the country’s ban on maize exports and is encouraging farmers to take advantage of the high demand for maize in neighboring countries to export some of the recorded 3.3 million ton bumper harvest from last season.
According to the Zambia Minister of Agriculture and Co-Operatives, Wylbur Simuusa, the Government has received numerous requests from neighboring countries for supplies of maize and Zambia farmers should take full advantage of this growing demand.
“Right now, there is demand for maize grain in the Democratic Republic of Congo, South Sudan, Zimbabwe and other countries,” he said. “I have been receiving requests from these countries on the possibilities of supplying them with maize.”
Hon. Simuusa has indicated that nearly 93% of the maize in Zambia is produced by the country’s small-scale farmers, who he has encouraged to increase their output from 900,000 tons to one million tons by the next agriculture season.
Maize, which is the staple food of Zambia, currently accounts for 75% of the crops grown in the country and has historically been exported to neighboring countries including Zimbabwe, Namibia and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)
