A verification exercise has revealed that Eastern Province currently has about 80,000 metric tonnes of maize in stock
This is according to a verification exercise conducted by the Inter-Agency Teams constituted by government in all provinces.
Eastern Province Permanent Secretary Chanda Kasolo has confirmed, stating that about 72,000 metric tonnes is in the hands of FRA, the Food Reserve Agency while the rest is with private dealers.
Speaking to Breeze News, Mr Kasolo stated that the 80,000 metric tonnes of maize will remain in Eastern Province unless in a situation where other parts of the country experience a shortage of the staple food.
He also explained that drafting of a Statutory Instrument that will spell out measures on how management of maize grain and its products will be conducted has not yet been concluded.
Mr Kasolo stated that the Statutory Instrument will protect the country’s food stocks.
He says that the statutory instrument will compel FRA to provide monthly update of the country’s maize availability.
Yesterday, Ministry of Agriculture Permanent Secretary Julius Shawa disclosed that the country has a total of 600, 433 metric tonnes of maize stocks to last up to August this year.