§ Mr. BercowTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent estimate he has made of the(a) level and (b) geographical distribution of food shortages in Tanzania.[148123]
§ Hilary BennThe Government of Tanzania (GoT) carried out an initial crop assessment in May 2003 followed by a rapid vulnerability assessment in July. A further vulnerability assessment will not be appropriate until after the February 2004 harvest is complete. However, food insecurity remains widespread with pockets of scarcity in at least 17 regions of Tanzania. As requested by GoT, DFID is funding Save the Children and Oxfam to facilitate the production of a food security update over the coming month.