Drought, Insecurity Add to Commodity Woes—African Ministers

Falling commodity prices for some have slashed revenues by more than half

Severe drought conditions, security issues adding to fiscal pressures

Hardest hit reaching out to international community for more support

Ministers from four strongly affected countries told a press briefing that weak global demand is taking a toll on growth prospects for the region, forcing significant fiscal adjustments.

Chad has lost over 60 percent of their budget revenue from the slump in oil prices, and the country’s Finance Minister, Mahamat Allamine Bourma Treye, said insecurity in the Lake Chad region caused by Boko Haram and an ISIS offshoot in the north has triggered a massive influx of refugees, putting added pressure on the country’s limited resources.

“This security situation has brought about a new problem, because we are no longer able to trade with neighboring countries. We have major agricultural production which is usually traded with Niger, but now the border is hermetically closed,” Treye said. “Thus far, assistance by the international community is very significant, but nonetheless insufficient given the tremendous challenges Chad faces.”

Climate change having an impact

Swaziland’s Finance Minister, Martin Dlamini, said the effects of climate change have caused macro-critical challenges for the country, noting that the frequency of natural disasters, such as droughts and floods, had intensified in recent years.

“Swaziland, like many other countries in southern Africa region is currently facing severe drought conditions, affecting agriculture—especially subsistence and livestock farming, disrupting water and power supply, fueling inflation and adding to fiscal pressures,” Dlamini said.

Swaziland is facing a 30 percent decline in trade revenues due to the slowdown in neighboring South Africa, also partly caused by the drought.

Burkina Faso’s...