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GIEWS Country Brief: Angola 24-January-2020

Countries
Angola
Sources
FAO
Publication date
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FOOD SECURITY SNAPSHOT

  • Favourable rains supported planting operations and early development of 2020 cereal crops

  • Cereal crops in 2019 adversely affected by rainfall deficits, resulting in below-average production

  • Food prices increased throughout 2019 due to reduced agricultural output and weaker national currency

  • Food insecurity situation deteriorated in southern provinces due to low agricultural production and high food prices

Favourable rains supported planting operations and early development of 2020 cereal crops

Planting of the 2020 cereal crops concluded in December 2019 and the harvest is expected to start in March. Since the start of the rainy season in October, conducive weather conditions have resulted in mostly adequate soil moisture, which supported planting operations and early crop development. As of early January, remote sensing vegetation data indicated generally favourable crop and grassland conditions. For the period January to March 2020, weather forecasts indicate an increased likelihood of average precipitation amounts in the main cereal-producing provinces of the centre. By contrast, total rainfall levels over the same period are expected to be below average in the minor producing southern provinces of Cuando Cubango and Cunene, raising the probability of a second consecutive reduced cereal harvest in these areas.

Cereal production in 2019 estimated at below-average level

The 2019 cereal crops were harvested last June and total production is estimated at 2.1 million tonnes, about 9 percent lower than the five-year average. The decline in production is mostly due to a reduced maize output, the main cereal grown in the country, reflecting erratic and below-average seasonal rainfall in the first quarter of 2019 that affected yields.

In the southern minor cereal producing provinces of Cuando Cubango and Cunene, severe moisture deficits in early 2019 caused a decline in the production of millet and sorghum, the main cereals grown in these provinces.