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Guinea

GIEWS Country Brief: Guinea 12-February-2018

Attachments

FOOD SECURITY SNAPSHOT

  • An above-average cereal harvest gathered in 2017 due to favourable weather conditions

  • About 34 000 people estimated to be food insecure

Favourable rains in 2017 resulted in above average cereal production

Harvesting of maize, millet and sorghum was completed in November 2017, while harvesting operations for rice, the most important crop produced in the country, was just concluded in January. Most cropping areas benefited from the timely and favourable rains during the growing period. Some areas, particularly in the east part of the country, such as Kankan and Mali regions, experienced rainfall deficits towards the end of the season compared to the average. These deficits, however, did not compromise crops’ performance.

According to preliminary estimates, despite some Fall Armyworm outbreaks, the aggregate cereal production in 2017 is estimated at about 3.9 million tonnes, 6 percent above the previous year’s output and 14 percent above average. Of this total, paddy rice production is estimated at 2.3 million tonnes, an 8 percent increase from the year before. Rice accounts for the bulk of the cereal production.

Owing to favourable rains, pasture supply and quality are currently favourable. However, with the progress of dry season, which lasts from February to May, coupled with bush fires, pasture supply is expected to deteriorate, particularly in the Middle and Upper Guinea regions.

On average, about 700 000 tonnes of cereals (mostly rice and wheat) are imported every year, corresponding to about 20 percent of the domestic cereal consumption requirements.
Following an above-average harvest, the import requirement is estimated to decrease.

Small pockets of food insecurity prevail

The local economy continues to be negatively affected by the lingering effects of the Ebola virus outbreak of 2014. The economy grew at about 6 percent in 2016 and 2017, driven mostly by agriculture. while services and manufacturing sectors continue to stagnate. Food price inflation remains in the double digit territory, ranging from 12 to 14 percent in 2017, eroding the purchasing power of the most vulnerable.

Small pockets of food insecurity prevail due to localized production shortfalls. According to the last analysis of the “Cadre Harmonisé” (Harmonized Framework) conducted in November 2017, around 34 000 people were estimated to be in Phase 3: “Crisis” and above between October and December 2017, down from about 286 000 people during the same period in the previous year.