South Africa is the worlds number one maize producer and was hit incredibly hard last year by a horrible drought. The government is considering now trying to create a reserve to secure the future of its people, food and economy of South Africa. There are concerns that there will be yet again another devastating drought so the government wants to find a solution to avoid it as much as possible. A strategic grain reserve would mean the government would have to buy up crops and then taking responsibility for the shortages. This leaves the government overall more responsible and should hopefully be able to help the people of South Africa. The Agricultural Minister explains that if it is a good crop season South Africa can flourish but because of the weather patterns which then caused a horrible drought, it could also severely affect the country. El Niño is the warming of the oceans surface in the eastern and central pacific, which occurs every few years. Because of El Niño, the east gets a huge amount of rain while the southern cone is left with little to no rain, causing a drought.
https://www.yahoo.com/news/exclusive-africa-considers-strategic-grain-possible-el-nino-120514845–business.html