Commission says 451,000MT grain in reserve
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The National Disaster Risk Management Commission said that Ethiopia has 451,000 metric tons of grain reserve that will be used to provide aid for people living in drought hit areas. Efforts are also underway to raise the reserve to 1.5 million metric tons.
Commissioner Mitiku Kassa said 627,000 metric tons of grain has so far been distributed from the Commission’s warehouses to people affected by drought in Oromia, Amhara, Southern Nations,Nationalities and Peoples, Afar, Benshangul-Gumuz and Gambella States.
The country imported 222,000 and 405,000 metric tons of grain in the first and second round respectively. It is also buying over 499,000 metric tons to ensure relief food supply sustainability, he added.
Moreover, it has purchased 100,000 metric tons of wheat from farmers’ cooperative unions and the former Ethiopian Grain Trade Enterprise, he said.
FBC