Zambia: Zambia Depends on Corn Imports to Maintain Food Security

Zambia’s production of its staple crop, corn, is expected to drop by more than 50 percent in marketing year 2024/25, due to extended dry spells associated with the El Niño event. Almost a million hectares of corn have been destroyed by the drought that forced the Zambian President to declare a “National Disaster and Emergency”. Post estimates that Zambia could import approximately 1 million metric tons of corn in marketing year 2024/25 to meet local demand and mandated strategic food reserves. As a result, the Zambia government authorized the private sector to import corn, albeit only genetically engineered free corn will be permitted. The cultivation of genetically engineered corn is still prohibited in Zambia. However, the country has made strides towards revising its biosafety policy, which will give momentum to revamped biosafety legislation, changing the current restrictive approach to biotechnology to a more science-based and enabling environment.