Impoverished Malawi claims record maize harvest

Malawian President Bingu wa Mutharika said Tuesday his impoverished southern African nation, once crippled by famine, produced a record maize harvest this year, more than enough to feed its people.

"In 2009, our country produced 3.7 million tonnes of maize, a 36 percent increase from last year's crop," Mutharika told parliament in his state of the nation address, broadcast live on state radio.

"This means we have registered a surplus of 1.3 metric tonnes," he said, in the first session of parliament following last month's general elections.

He said Malawi needs 2.4 million tonnes annually to feed its population.

He attributed the record harvest to "heavy investment" in subsidised fertilizer and other farm inputs, which in the 2008/9 growing season alone cost 183 million dollars -- the highest figure since the programme was introduced in 2005.

Malawi grew enough to feed its 13 million people for the first time in seven years in 2006, following a series of poor harvests blamed on drought.

Mutharika said the subsidies benefitted two million peasant farmers who grew maize, tobacco, coffee and tea.

"The government will continue with this programme," he said.

The scheme was introduced by Mutharika and was credited with helping him win a sweeping victory in last month's elections, despite tough competition from an opposition alliance.

The government-funded programme is hugely popular in Malawi. It brings down the cost of a 50-kilo bag of fertiliser to 3.80 dollars, lower than the market price of 5.70 dollars.

Last year, Malawi produced a bumper harvest of 3.3 million tonnes of maize, also credited to the subsidies.

Over 400,000 tonnes of the surplus maize from last year's harvest was exported to cash-strapped Zimbabwe, once the region's bread-basket.

Food security is a pressing issue in Malawi, where 60 percent of the people live on less than a dollar a day.

Famine threatened up to five million people in 2005 following drought and the government spent over 100 million dollars to import food from South Africa and the region to avert hunger.

Some 85 percent of farming is done by smallholder farmers who use mainly hoes and manual labour to grow 80 percent of the food produced in Malawi.