KENYA IN TOUGH TIMES FOLLOWING TANZANIA BORDER CLOSURE, HOLDS TALK WITH TANZANIA TO UNBLOCK ZAMBIAN MAIZE

Nairobi is talking with Tanzania to open its border so that maize from Zambia can pass through and ease the current shortage.

“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is in talks with Tanzania to allow maize coming in from Zambia to pass through their country,” Director of Crops in Kenya's Ministry of Agriculture Johnson Irungu said.

Tanzania has closed its borders restricting the movement of grains in a move aimed at ensuring that food crops are not exported from the country to protect its limited stocks.

Zambia has agreed to sell to Kenya 55,000 tonnes of white maize, but with the closure of the border, the commodity may have to use a longer route through Rwanda and Uganda.

He noted that some grains from Uganda have started coming for the first time since the beginning of the year. About 111,000 bags of maize have been exported to Kenya via Tororo in eastern Uganda.

Kenya is suffering an acute shortage of grain following poor harvest last year resulting from erratic rains experienced during the planting season in 2016.

The country normally imports grain from Uganda and Tanzania to bridge the deficit.

Tanzania has restricted export of maize while Uganda did not have a good harvest last season, with the little available finding its way to South Sudan where it fetches a premium.