A uniform grading system for maize from the countries of the Common Market for East and Southern Africa (COMESA) and the East African Community (EAC) has been introduced.
The absence of a uniform quality standard has been one of the technical barriers hampering the export of maize. This has brought about distorting deficits and surpluses of the widely traded and consumed commodity in the region.
Speaking at a regional consultative meeting on maize standardization in Kampala, Uganda's Minister for Industry, Ephraim Kamuntu, said: “As we continue to press for better access to international markets, it is important that our partner states re-examine the opportunities for utilizing regional trade to increase exports."
COMESA currently produces 22-23 million metric tones of maize annually. Of this, 18 million metric tones are consumed, indicating a surplus of four million tonnes of surplus. Yet still an estimated 2 million metric tones of maize is imported into the region.
Mr. Stephen Kauri Njukia, a commodity specialist with the Regional Agricultural Trade Expansion Support Programme (RATES) said, “The variation in standards has hindered the movement of maize from the areas where it’s in plenty to areas of shortage.”
Some countries, he added, produce plenty of maize but it becomes very expensive to supply the commodity to such areas because of the poor infrastructures. To rectify the situation, the two overlapping regional blocs, the East African Community (EAC) and COMESA, have joined efforts to harmonise into a single standard.
EAC had specific standards used by traders but they were not able to supply countries in COMESA because of the variation in standards. “EAC countries were able to trade amongst each other but some COMESA member countries could not. That’s why you would hear of a deficit in Zambia or Zimbabwe. Now COMESA is adopting the same standard and this problem will be solved,” Njukia said.
However, Njukia said having a uniform standard would not mean a fixed price. Prices will be determined by the market forces in respective countries. The maize standards agreed on are grade 1 and 2, depending on the nutritional value.
In the region, Ethiopia is the largest producer, followed by Kenya, Tanzania and Zambia. Other producers include Uganda, Zimbabwe, Burundi and Rwanda, among others.
Meanwhile, dealers in maize have welcomed the initiative, saying it was long over due.
