Drought Delays Crop Planting in Kenya, Stoking Inflation

NAIROBI (Capital Markets in Africa) – A prolonged dry spell in Kenya has delayed planting of crops in the East African country, increasing inflationary pressures from higher food prices.

“Late onset of the 2019 long rains and prevailing dry conditions affected the early planted crop,” the Ministry of Agriculture said in a statement on its website. The resultant shortage of food in some areas caused prices of corn, beans and wheat to increase slightly, the ministry said, without mentioning figures. Kenya depends mainly on rainfall to water fields and for livestock.

Higher food costs contributed to the inflation rate climbing from a six-month low in March. Consumer inflation accelerated to an annual 4.4 percent compared with 4.1 percent in February, according to the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics.

The ministry said planting in the central, coastal and lower-eastern regions might only start later this month when the long rains are expected. The rains usually come in March and continue through May, according to information from the country’s meteorological agency.

The drought has left more than a million people in a dozen counties in urgent need of food assistance. A similar dry spell in 2017 contributed to Kenya’s economic growth slowing to the weakest pace since 2011. The drought continued for three seasons, cutting production of corn, a staple food, and leading to shortages of other foods including milk.

Agriculture directly contributes 26 percent of gross domestic product and another 27 percent indirectly through linkages with other industries, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization. The industry also accounts for 65 percent of export earnings and employs more than 40 percent of the population, including more than 70 percent of people in rural areas.

Source: Bloomberg Business News