Egypt’s Population Surge Set to Make it the Largest Wheat Importer Globally
In the upcoming fiscal year of 2023-2024, Egypt is on track to secure its position as the world’s leading importer of wheat. Projections indicate that the country will import a staggering 12 million tons of wheat, marking a notable increase from the 11.2 million tons imported in the previous year.
According to a recent report by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Egypt is expected to see a rise in imports to meet the growing demand and ensure adequate stock levels.
Three years have passed since Egypt revealed that its population had exceeded 100 million, highlighting the significance of bread as a dietary staple for the majority of Egyptians.
Egypt’s domestic production is projected to continue at the same level of 9.7 million tons of wheat a year, with a below-average harvest predicted due to decreasing rainfall.
Egypt struggled to import wheat from the global market last year, with high international prices caused by the war in Ukraine and a weak Egyptian pound leading to a decrease in imports.
Although lower international prices for wheat are expected, Egypt’s ability to both import wheat and continue subsidising bread is likely to be a challenge amid its current economic woes.
Egypt’s latest figures showed that in May inflation was at 33.7 per cent, although the government has managed to mitigate bread inflation, which was marked at 4.6 per cent in May, through continued subsidisation of the commodity.
In April, Standard and Poor’s (S&P) revised Egypt’s credit outlook from stable to poor citing an inability to stabilise the exchange rate and attain foreign currency inflows.
With a continued decline in the value of the Egyptian pound and a shortage of foreign currency, Egypt has turned to deferring payments on wheat purchases.
Egypt provides subsidised bread to 70 million of its 104 million citizens, with the government recently pledging to raise funding for food subsidies to 127.7 billion Egyptian pounds, a 41.9 per cent increase.
