CAPE TOWN (Reuters) – A severe drought afflicting South Africa’s Western Cape province is expected to cut agricultural output by 20 percent this year, decimating the wheat crop and reducing apple, grape and pear exports to Europe, officials said on Thursday.
“If we compare the past quarter to the same time period last year, we see the severe impact that this drought is beginning to have on jobs and livelihoods,” Winde said, adding that 30,000 jobs had been lost.
Among the worst hit crops is wheat, whose output is projected to plunge to 586,000 tonnes in 2018 from 1.1 million tonnes harvested in the previous year – a 2.4-billion-rand loss for the grain sector.
This will force a more than 100 percent rise in wheat imports to 2.1 million tonnes in 2018 from 935,000 tonnes last year, industry body Grain SA said on Thursday.
Fields of harvested wheat are seen near Cape Town, South Africa, February 3, 2018.
Western Cape’s famed wine industry has also struggled under the prolonged drought, with forecasts indicating the next grape harvest could be the smallest since 2005.
Cape Town, whose picturesque ocean front location with mountain backdrop is a major tourist draw, expects to run out of water on July 9 unless residents can stick to a rationing plan limiting them to a maximum of 50 liters per person per day.
A series of restrictions imposed over the past three years has cut collective consumption by over half since 2015, as city officials look to see out the hot summer months into winter, when rain normally replenishes reservoirs.
“If each one of us continues to use 50 liters a day, we can not only beat Day Zero this year but also be in a better position to avoid it next year,” said Deputy Mayor Ian Neilson.
“If each one of us continues to use 50 liters a day, we can not only beat Day Zero this year but also be in a better position to avoid it next year,” said Deputy Mayor Ian Neilson.