ReliefWeb

The output of the recently harvested 2000 A season was good despite severe crop losses due to dry weather in eastern and southern parts. Aggregate food production is estimated at 2.8 million tonnes, a rise of 20 percent from the previous year. A substantial increase in area planted compared to the 1999 A season, as well as overall favourable rains, supported the increase in production. However, a prolonged dry spell during the month of October, severely damaged cereal and beans crops in the Eastern and Southern provinces.
As a result of the satisfactory food production and increased flow of commercial imports, there has been an improvement in the overall food supply situation and a decline in food aid requirements for the first half of the year. However, the food situation remains critical for vulnerable people in several areas. A recent nutritional survey carried out in the Northwest province of Ruhengeri last December, indicate a global chronic malnutrition rate of 56 percent and a severe malnutrition rate of 2.5 percent.