Consult all stakeholders before making any imports, Government told

An MP wants the Government not to allow any maize imports without consulting all stakeholders, including farmers. Moiben MP Silas Tiren (Pictured),also a member of Parliament’s Committee on Agriculture, said the ministry should first buy all maize available locally.

He said he is aware of meetings with some millers pushing the government to allow importation to address the rising cost of flour.

“We do not want to fall into another situation similar to the 2017 importation of maize from Mexico, threefold to the deficit, which led to a serious glut that affected market for local maize farmers,” he said. 

The MP said if plans are underway to import maize later in the year, producers should be involved in consultations.

He noted that majority farmers acquired credit facilities from financial institutions and it will be difficult to repay if the market is saturated.