A notice signed by the Secretary for the Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Water Development, has announced that in a bid to respond to maize shortage in some parts of the country, which experienced production deficits in the 2018/19 season, Government has extended the maize buying period and adjusted the buying price.

“Government has extended the maize buying period to 29th February 2020 and further revised the buying price from the previous K250 per kilogram to K310 per kilogram.” says the notice.

The resolve has been as Government is convinced

that the country has considerable stocks of maize being held by private entities including individual traders, cooperatives and associations as well as companies. “The hoarding of maize stocks has resulted in some parts of the country falling into the food insecurity trap due to declining supply which has pushed retail prices up, making the commodity unaffordable to the majority of consumers.” says the notice.

Meanwhile Admarc is amidst efforts to pick itself up, as the maize scarcity has negatively affected the company, while employees have been protesting against the lack of pension remittance.