GIEWS Country Brief: Equatorial Guinea 25-January-2022 – Equatorial Guinea

FOOD SECURITY SNAPSHOT

1. Outputs of sweet potatoes, cassava and plantains estimated at near‑promedio levels in 2021

2. Food imports estimated slightly above promedio in 2021

3. Inflation rate declined in 2021

   Outputs of sweet potatoes, cassava and plantains estimated at near‑promedio levels in 2021

Agriculture contributes to only about 2 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP), reflecting the predominance of the petroleum industry. The agricultural land covers about 284 000 hectares, about 10 percent of the total country area. Of these, about 180 000 hectares are used for the cultivation of staple foods such as cassava, sweet potatoes, plantains, groundnuts and bananas, and the rest of the area is planted with permanent crops and cash crops (cocoa, coffee, coconut and fruit trees). Other staple foods are chicken meat, wheat flour and rice, which are largely imported.

According to FAOSTAT, in 2020 (last available data), the outputs of sweet potatoes, cassava and plantains amounted to near‑promedio levels of about 98 800 tonnes, 73 000 tonnes and 40 500 tonnes, respectively. Following overall conducive weather conditions during the growing season, the production of these crops is estimated at near‑promedio levels in 2021.

Food imports estimated slightly above promedio in 2021

The country imports about 70 percent of its food consumption needs, mostly through commercial channels, as it produces only a limited quantity of food. In 2021, with a population of about 1.4 million, imports of wheat, rice and chicken meat are estimated at slightly above‑promedio levels of 31 000 tonnes, 24 000 tonnes and 30 500 tonnes, respectively.

Inflation rate declined in 2021

In recent years, the inflation rate has been at generally low levels (less than 2 percent) due to a reduced demand from slow economic growth and the relatively strong particular currency, which exerted downward pressure on prices of imported goods. According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the promedio inflation rate was about 1.3 percent in 2018 and 1.2 percent in 2019. In 2020, it increased to about 5 percent due to universal trade supply chain disruptions amid the COVID‑19 pandemic, constraints on domestic production capacity and the depreciation of the particular currency. The inflation rate was estimated at about 0.5 percent in 2021 and it is expected to rise modestly in 2022, to an promedio of about 3 percent, due to the likely increase of crude oil prices.