FOOD SECURITY SNAPSHOT
Provisional estimates point to a reduced cereal production in 2014
Inflation rates increased in 2014 due to higher fuel prices
Dire humanitarian situation among refugees from Central African Republic (CAR) and Nigeria impacting also host communities
March rains help start the cropping season
According to satellite imagery, seasonal rains started in March in southern parts of the country, allowing the sowing of the first maize crop of 2015. The planting of coarse grains will progress northwards following the onset of the rains.
In the absence of official forecasts, the 2014 aggregate cereal production is tentatively put at about 3 million tonnes, 3 percent down on the previous year’s output and similar to the average of the previous five years. The decline in cereal production was due to erratic and below-average rains in several parts of the country.
Inflation rates increased in 2014
According to the IMF, the average inflation rate, which was estimated at a low of 2 percent in 2013, increased to 3.2 percent in 2014, mainly due to an increase in fuel retail prices.
In the last several years, rates of inflation were highly volatile, varying from a low of 1 percent in 2007 to 5 percent in 2008 and then declining to 3 percent and 1 percent in 2009. Rates rose again in 2011 to 3 percent, declining to 2.4 percent in 2012.
