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EXPORT OVERVIEW

Export Overview comprises information regarding the national exports of tobacco leaf

EXPORT WEIGHT

9%

Percentage that tobacco leaf represents on the overall exports of the country (Source: calculated from data from UN Comtrade, 2020)

IN THE WORLD

1%

Percentage that the country represents in the international tobacco leaf trade (Source: calculated from data from FAO, 2019)

PRODUCTION OUTLOOK

Types of tobacco leaf grown in 2020 (Source: ITGA): FC Virginia and Burley

PEOPLE INVOLVED IN TOBACCO

Employment numbers of the tobacco leaf value chain in 2020 (Source: ITGA): Growers: 17 637

AREA BY LEAF TYPE

Represents the percentage of area cultivated by tobacco leaf type in the country in 2020 (Source: ITGA)

73%

FLUE-CURED VIRGINIA

27%

BURLEY

KEY INSIGHTS

Key values of the tobacco leaf production in the country

17.00

AREA

Thousand Hectares (2020), Source: ITGA
30.00

PRODUCTION

Thousand Hectares (2020), Source: ITGA
0.95

AREA/GROWER

Hectares per Grower (2020), Source: ITGA
112.00

EXPORT VALUE

Million US$ (2020), Source: UN Comtrade
73

PRODUCTION VALUE

Million US$ (2020), Source: ITGA
1,812

YIELD

kg per Hectare (2020), Source: ITGA
4,344

REVENUE/HA

US$/ha (2020), Source: ITGA

TOBACCO IN ZAMBIA

Brief contextualization of the importance of Tobacco in Zambia

72

CONTRACT

Tobacco farming enterprise (% of total farmers)

Domestic tobacco production is characterized by smallholder enterprises. The crop is regarded as one of the most viable crops to grow. This fact is due to the organized market structure that is set in place, while the same is not true for other crops that are suggested for diversification. Also, being a cash crop means that it provides growers with cash on hand, which allows growers and their families to able to face household and education expenditure, making tobacco a highly important source of income for the rural population. Tobacco is one of the crops that is produced due to being easily exported, generating precious foreign revenue for the country.

Sources: FAO, The Economics of Tobacco Farming in Zambia (2017), Tobacco and Nicotine database and ITGA.

EXPORT PARTNERS

This section aims at identifying the most important commercial partners in terms of Value and Quantity (Source: Calculated from data from UN Comtrade)

  • MALAWI 36%

  • CHINA 28%

  • SWITZERLAND 20%

  • ZIMBABWE 5%

  • GERMANY 4%

  • OTHERS 7%

  • MALAWI 53%

  • CHINA 16%

  • SWITZERLAND 11%

  • GERMANY 6%

  • SOUTH AFRICA 4%

  • OTHERS 10%