The Challenges of FRA Maize Pricing Abstract: Zambia has recently emerged from a period of very high maize prices in the 2008/09 season, which has caused great hardship for consumers. Ironically, world maize prices tumbled in late 2008. SAFEX maize prices have hovered near $170 per tonne since November 2008. Yet Zambian maize prices remained over $300 per tonne until the 2009 harvest that has recently hit the market. The extremely high Zambian prices in the 2008/09 season were caused by a combination of high world prices, a lack of transparency about available supplies in the country, late timing of decisions to imports, and poor coordination among the various actors involved in the maize sector. It is important to learn from the 2008/09 experience in order to not repeat past mistakes in the 2009/2010 marketing season and beyond. Currently the GRZ faces especially important decisions about the optimal role of the Food Reserve Agency to assist in helping the country ensure food security and promote the interests of farmers and consumers in the country. Creation-date: 2009-07
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