Angola bans banana imports

Luanda - Angola has banned banana imports from some nations in central and eastern Africa due to the proliferation of a disease known as banana Xanthomonas wilt disease in the region, the Agriculture Ministry said.

The ministry said in a statement that the banana import ban was imposed on the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Congo, Ethiopia, Rwanda, Uganda, Burundi and Kenya.

The disease Xanthomonas campestris causes the banana fruits to prematurely ripen, leaves to wilt and the affected plants die leading to total yield loss.

Angola has been struggling to revive its once-prosperous banana industry following a 1975-2002 civil war that devastated the southern African nation's farming sector.

- Reuters