US$51 Million Needed For Recapitalisation Of Zimbabwe’s Strategic Grain Reserve
HARARE, Zimbabwe, April 1 (Bernama)– At least US$51 million is required to
recapitalise the country’s strategic grain reserve, information from the
Agriculture, Mechanisation and Irrigation Development Ministry indicates.
The strategic grain reserve is stocks of grain held in reserve intentionally
by government programmes for the purpose of meeting future domestic and
international needs, Zimbabwe’s news agency New Ziana reported.
“The strategic grain reserve requires US$51 million. Source of funding has
been identified and presented to the Ministry of Finance for finalisation,”
it said.
The funding is targeted at silo rehabilitation which will gobble US$31
million while US$13 million will be channeled towards establishment of a
logistics fleet and US$7 million going towards development of ICT
infrastructure.
The Grain Marketing Board (GMB) has said that it is targeting to build
strategic grain reserves amounting to 250,000 metric tonnes this year.
The parastatal has on many occasions failed to pay farmers timeously for
grain delivered to its depots.
Government has since taken steps to privatise the GMB to help revive its
fortunes and liberalize grain marketing.
Prior to that, GMB had legal monopoly over trade in strategic grains such as
maize and wheat.
— BERNAMA