Area: |
318 000 sq.km |
Climate: |
Tropical wet-dry; two rainy seasons
(March-July and September-December) in south and one in north (May-Oct.) |
Population: |
15.2 million (2000 estimate); G.N.P.
per caput: US$710 (1999) |
Specific characteristics of the
country: |
Low-income food-deficit country;
coastal country |
Logistics: |
Ports and roads adequate; gateway to
Burkina Faso and Mali |
Major foodcrops: |
Roots and tubers, fruit, rice, maize |
Marketing year: |
January/December; Lean season: April to
July |
Share of cereals in total calorie
intake: |
40 percent |
Following widespread and abundant rains in mid-September, precipitation decreased in late September and early October but improved in mid-October. In the south, the second maize crop is developing satisfactorily. In the north, millet and sorghum are now being harvested. Harvest prospects are generally favourable.
Following an above-average cereal harvest in 1999, the overall food supply situation is satisfactory. However, recent civil disturbances affected marketing activities. Substantial quantities of rice, exceeding average annual imports, have been received. Some 86 000 Liberian refugees and 1 500 Sierra Leoneans remain in the west.
| Wheat | Rice | Coarse grains | Total | |
| Previous five years average production | - | 1 002 | 728 | 1 730 |
| Previous five years average imports | 265 | 369 | 15 | 649 |
| 2000 Domestic Availability | 10 | 586 | 793 | 1 388 |
| 1999 Production (rice in paddy terms) | - | 976 | 793 | 1 769 |
| 1999 Production (rice in milled terms) | - | 586 | 793 | 1 378 |
| Possible stock drawdown | 10 | - | - | 10 |
| 2000 Utilization | 260 | 1 331 | 808 | 2 398 |
| Food Use | 250 | 984 | 590 | 1 824 |
| of which: local purchase requirement | - | - | - | - |
| Non-food use | 5 | 146 | 188 | 339 |
| Exports or Re-exports | 5 | 50 | 10 | 65 |
| Possible stock build up | - | 150 | 20 | 170 |
| 2000 Import Requirement | 250 | 745 | 15 | 1 010 |
| Anticipated commercial imports | 250 | 735 | 7 | 992 |
| Food aid needs | - | 10 | 8 | 18 |
| Current Aid Position | ||||
| Food aid pledges | - | 10 | 8 | 18 |
| of which: Delivered | - | 3 | 8 | 11 |
| Donor-financed purchases | - | - | - | - |
| of which: for local use | - | - | - | - |
| for export | - | - | - | - |
| Estimated Per Caput Consumption (kg/Year) | 16 | 65 | 39 | 120 |
| Indexes | ||||
| 1999 production as % of average: | 102 | |||
| 2000 import requirement as % of average: | 156 |
