In mid-February 2022, the Government of Zimbabwe lifted the import ban on maize, which had been introduced in June 2021 (FPMA Food Policies). The measure comes amid poor prospects for the 2022 domestic maize crop, to be harvested in the next weeks, and supply disruptions in the international market, emanating from the conflict in Ukraine.

Zimbabwe had registered a bumper maize output in 2021 that lifted national stocks to a level above the five-year average and these larger stock volumes could partly mitigate the effects of a downturn in maize production in 2022. Nonetheless, the national stocks are not expected to fully compensate for the lower output and import requirements are forecast to increase in the 2022/23 marketing year (April/March). The resumption of maize imports is therefore expected to help buffer supplies in 2022. South Africa, a key source of grain for Zimbabwe, is forecast to harvest an above-average maize crop in 2022 and expected to have sufficient exportable supplies to meet the import needs of Zimbabwe. However, rising grain prices in South Africa are a concern, particularly given the already high inflation rates in Zimbabwe.