Customs and excise duty on maize exports have been suspended, meaning that all excess maize exports from the 2020/2021 maize bumper harvest will be exported out of Zambia without paying any export tax.
Finance Minister Situmbeko Musokotwane suspended export tax on maize from 1st November to 31 December 2021. This was done through a statutory instrument no. 83 of 2021 seen by the Zambian Business Times – ZBT.
Agro analysts have called for long lasting policies on the application of customs and excise duty on maize exports together with the perennial and unpredictable bans on exports at the expense of maize or corn farmers who are forced sometimes forced to end up lobbying even after their hard earns production.
Suspicions and accusations of corruption regarding “policy auctioning” and “taking cuts in exchange for tax breaks” have also been sounded by stakeholders which need to be eliminated by implementing well thought out and longer lasting Agro policies that would take away the need for lobbying to qualify for granting of export permits.
The Ministry of Agriculture in September 2021 authorized exports of 450, 000 tons of maize grain following the stocks monitoring committee meeting held in September this 2021. There is also more maize that is yet to be mopped up across the country. See earlier ZBT article on 450,000 tons maize authorized for export .
A further 450,000 tons have been advertised for sell by a Ministry of Agriculture Agency, the Food Reserve Agency – FRA for additional sale and possible exports. FRA to raise K1.8 billion on additional maize sales.
