Malawi hunger: MP Jumbe asks assurances on maize availability

Salima Central MP Felix Jumbe on Tuesday asked the government to come out and assure the nation that there are enough stocks of maize in the country following reports that Zambia will not be transporting the 300 million metric tonnes of maize until September.

Jumbe: Need assuarances
Jumbe: Need assuarances

Jumbe said the delay to transport the maize to Malawi would put lives of over one million Malawians on the verge of starvation.

“The situation is very serious, we need a ministerial statement from the minister of Agriculture, at least an assurance,” said Jumbe who is also the chairman of parliament’s Agriculture Committee.

The country faces severe hunger this year because of El Nino climate phenomenon which has caused heavy flooding in the north and drought in the south forcing Malawi to realise only 42 per cent of its maize putting over 8000 Malawians at risk of starvation.

Minister of Finance, Economic Planning and Development  Goodall Gondwe said the government was not depending the maize from Zambia only.

“We have sent our men to Brazil, Mexico and other countries and everything looks promising. Zambia is just one of the countries we are buying the maize,” said Gondwe.

President Peter Mutharika has said time and again that no one will die of hunger in Malawi but opposition and critics argue that he Head of State is living in denial as many have lost lives in hunger related deaths.

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ANALYST
ANALYST
7 years ago

Is this not the same Jumbe who told this APM thing that Malawi had lots of maize?

Peter Nkosi
Peter Nkosi
7 years ago

Link to last week’s article: “Admarc buys just 200 000 metric tons of maize out of targeted 300 000 tons”:

http://www.nyasatimes.com/admarc-buys-just-200-000-metric-tons-maize-targeted-300-000-tons/

Peter Nkosi
Peter Nkosi
7 years ago

“We have sent our men to Brazil, Mexico and other countries and everything looks promising.”

But last week here in NT I read that everything didn’t just LOOK promising, but we were lead to believe by a minister that the maize had been most definitely purchased and paid for, and it was just about to start arriving in the country.

Soon we will just be eating plans and promises.

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