The Minister of Economy and Trade, Amin Salam, told a local news agency that Lebanon is looking to plan for a tender to import about 50,000 tonnes of wheat from India.
Minister Salam commented that the timing will depend on Lebanon’s Central Bank opening for the necessary funding.
According to the Minister, the Lebanese government has demanded an advance of $26 million from the Central Bank in order to initiate the tender.
“India is the first state to give me a final answer on quantities and tomorrow it will give me an answer on the price,” said Minister Salam who has held talks last week with the Indian Ambassador for wheat supply.
In regards to Lebanon’s critical wheat reserves or supply, Minister Salam revealed that Lebanon still has “few purchases that are coming in the next week,… But after that, we are not sure what we can get from Ukraine.”
Lebanon imports more than 50% of its wheat from Ukraine, which is the main source of wheat worldwide. That supply is coming to a halt as the country is under Russia’s military attack.
Lebanon is among the country that has been deeply impacted by that war in eastern Europe. As expressed by the United Nations, Lebanon is now seeing its breadbasket “being bombed.”
It is to note that India is the world’s second wheat grower, and is currently planning to increase its wheat import, according to international reports. This is mainly due to local weather conditions having a negative impact on the crop.
However, India’s plan could materialize as a saver for the world’s growing needs of wheat, filling the critical gap left by the Russian-Ukrainian war.
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