By ETimes
The country recorded favourable rains this farming season that may result in good harvests.
However, the chances of getting a relatively high agricultural output are slim and none due to the shortage of fertilizers and chemicals that have been experienced. In hardware stores, there is a shortage of ammonium nitrate and compound D (basal and topdressing fertilizers) for cereals such as maize and wheat. Such shortfalls of fertilizers credited to the Russo-Ukraine War globally have resulted in global inflation that has had a ripple effect on the agriculture economy of Zimbabwe.
In 2021/22, the bag of fertiliser was pegged at a minimum price of US$25.00, while the maximum price was US$33.00 per 50kg.
At present, the same bag of fertiliser has gone up by 105%. This implies that a 50kg bag of fertiliser is pegged at US$55.00; and yet, the base salary of a low-income worker has remained stagnant, except for depreciating in value or being corroded by inflation.
Further, there is a huge shortage of money circulating in the economy.
With that in mind, there might be reduced acreage and agricultural output in spite of positive projections influenced by propaganda propagated by governing government politicians.
But in the tobacco industry, production is likely to boost because it is the only well financed and heavily subsidized agro-business sector in comparison to the underfunded food security sector.
Based on our understanding of Zimbabwean agro-economics generally, food inflation will not stabilize or slow down because we’re already experiencing food shortages before and after harvests.
Thus, international financial institutions, economists and financial experts had revised the estimate down to +/- 2% growth of the economy by the end of 2023 – Harare