Fertiliser industry upbeat
LOCAL fertiliser manufacturers are confident of meeting demand for the 2017/18 summer cropping season if the sector continues to get support from the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ).
The sector has 120 000 tonnes of fertilisers in stock and is currently working closely with the central bank.
Industry spokesperson Mr Tapiwa Mashingaidze yesterday said the country required about 250 000 tonnes of compounds and 250 000 tonnes of top dressing fertilisers.
“We have about 120 000 tonnes of fertilisers in the warehouse and the system,” he said. “We do not expect a shortage of basal fertiliser, but we need to top up on top dressing fertilisers such as ammonium nitrate and urea.
“The most important thing is to maintain the stock of raw materials as they get used. We require raw materials mainly for basal fertiliser, which are compounds. We import some of the raw material, while others are supplied by local suppliers.
“We have been getting a lot of money from the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe. We require $120 million for raw materials and supplementary supplies. We hope support we are getting from the central bank will improve, and we expect to benefit from the $600 million facility recently announced by RBZ Governor, Dr John Mangudya. We hope this facility will contribute immensely to high levels of raw materials.”
The RBZ has negotiated for an enhanced nostro stabilisation facility of $600 million from Afreximbank.
This nostro stabilisation facility, which essentially provides a pool of funds for processing foreign payments, is expected to be available for draw-down by the end of August.
Mr Mashingaidze said some fertiliser companies had other schemes and special arrangements of mobilising resources.
Meanwhile, farmers are already preparing for the summer cropping season through procuring seed and fertilisers, including land preparations.
The rain forecast for the upcoming season, which is expected to be made today by the Meteorological Services Department, is also being eagerly awaited for by the farmers.