BY SETHABILE MYENI
MBABANE – NAMBOARD has announced that the importing of vegetables such as butternut and green pepper will be halted effective from December 18, 2023.
This was disclosed by NAMBOARD Chief Executive Officer Bhekizwe Maziya this morning.
He said the stoppage was necessitated by the increased production of the two vegetables in Eswatini.
“The NAMBOARD Act No 13 of 1985 states that as regulators we should maintain the balance between the demand and supply of all vegetables. During our assessment we have gathered that the supply of butternut and green pepper has increased hence we are now stopping Eswatini traders from importing these vegetables,” he said.
Maziya mentioned that NAMBOARD is always on toes regulating the demand and supply of all vegetables.
EPN has gathered that few months back NAMBOARD had stopped traders from importing beetroot and tomatoes because of increased supply in the country.
“Due to rapid rainfalls which do not favour the growing of tomatoes most tomato plants were infected and damaged which reduced production also, the demand of beetroot increased since the approach of the festive season. Traders were then allowed to import these two vegetables on the 8th of December, 2023,” said Maziya.
Maziya later pleaded with farmers and traders not to take advantage of this announcement and increase the prices of these vegetables but they should consider that they are all in business and be fair.
“Unfortunately the law does not allow us to regulate the prices of vegetables but we can only regulate the supply and demand of each vegetable. We can only ask our farmers and traders to cooperate,” he said.
