Kazakh media reports say Kazak authorities have decided to extend wheat export restrictions in order to avoid food crisis.
Thus, inbusienss.kz reports that by imposing wheat and wheat flour export quotas, Kazakhstan is trying to secure its domestic market and maintain its traditional sales market.
The wheat and wheat flour quotas deadline is ending tomorrow, June 15, but the Ministry of Agriculture of Kazakhstan has announced its intention to extend the wheat and wheat flour quotas until autumn in order to secure its domestic market, according to inbusiness.kz.
Kazakh Minister of Agriculture Yerbol Karashukeyev reportedly stated recently that “Kazakhstan plans to extend its wheat and wheat flour quotas from June 15 to September 1.”
inbusiness.kz notes that the government of the country will be forced to take such a step due to the fact that experts predict a “world war for bread” due to the threat of a shortage of grain and reports that Ukraine, in whose territory hostilities are taking place, will not be able to ensure its volume of grain supplies to the world market, particularly to Africa and Middle and East.
Recall, Kazakhstan government has decided to impose wheat and wheat flour export quotas for two months from April 15 to June 15. The decision was made at a meeting of the Operational Headquarters of the Government of Kazakhstan that took place on April 1.
On April 16, Kazakh Ministry of Agriculture passed a decree announcing that it will limit grain and flour exports to 1 million tons and 300,000 million tons per month, respectively, for two months starting on April 16 and ending on June 15. In particular, the Agricultural Minister Yerbol Karashukeyev specified that during this period, local grain exporters will be able to export 1 million tons of grain from Kazakhstan, but will have to supply 10 percent of this volume to the Kazakh state-owned grain regulator OJSC Food Contract Corporation (FCC).
Kazakhstan's decision to ban wheat exports is really bad news for the country’s poorer Central Asian neighbors, including Tajikistan.
To-date, Kazakhstan has provided the bulk of Tajikistan’s grain and flour imports. According to some sources, Tajikistan annually buys nearly 1 million tons of wheat from Kazakhstan, which accounts for up to 94 percent of Tajikistan’s grain imports.
Thus, the Agency for Statistics under the Government of Tajikistan says Tajikistan has imported more than US$60 million worth of about 203,000 tons of wheat from Kazakhstan over the first three months of this year, which is 7.6 percent fewer by weight and 12.7 percent more by cost than in the same period last year.
Tajikistan’s annual requirements in wheat are more than 2 million tons; therefore, according to the forecast of the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade (MoEDT), Tajikistan is expected to import 1.2 millions of wheat this year.
Some experts predict that as a result of Kazakhstan’s decision to prolong the curbs beyond June, Tajikistan will face severe food shortages.
The Tajikistan authorities, however, state that the country has stocked up on sufficient amount of food products, including wheat and wheat flour.
The Government of Tajikistan has instructed relevant ministries and agencies to take necessary measures to get non-tariff quota for grain from Russia.
This is stated in a government regulation on the plan of actions to prevent the impact of possible risks on the national economy.
It is supposed that Tajikistan will pay for Russian grain imported on concessional terms in Russian rubles.
