- Title: Bulk food importer Congo holds fair to push local production.
- Date: 24th August 2017
- Summary: KINSHASA, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO (AUGUST 22, 2017) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF ENTRANCE OF AGRICULTURE TRADE FAIRS/ BANNER READING (FRENCH): "INTERNATIONAL AGRICULTURE FAIR KINSHASA" VARIOUS OF STANDS VARIOUS OF PEOPLE WALKING AROUND VENUE, VEGETABLES ON DISPLAY VEGETABLES AND PRICE ON DISPLAY MORE OF STANDS/ MEN ROASTING MEAT ON GRILL (SOUNDBITE) (French) CONGO'S MINISTER OF PROVINCIAL AGRICULTURE AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT, MAGLOIR KABEMBA SAYING: "Through this fair, we want the people to get more involved in agriculture, something that will make them want to work with the soil. Because it's the soil that nourishes men. As they say, we are a country that has been blessed by God. We have 80 million hectares of arable land, which represents 60 percent of arable land in Africa, and 50 percent of arable land in the world." VARIOUS OF STANDS EXHIBITING VEGETABLES/PEOPLE BUYING VEGETABLES ON DISPLAY (SOUNDBITE) (French) FAIR VISITOR, AUGUSTAIN BULAYIMU SAYING: "The first question that we need to ask is whether a farmer in the village gets access to funding, that's the first thing. The second thing is that even those who are able to cultivate have no roads to transport their produce. The government should come up with measures to help a farmer who doesn't have the means to sell what they have cultivated." KINSHASA, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO (AUGUST 23, 2017) (REUTERS) VARIOUS MARKET SCENES/ PEOPLE IN MARKET, VEGETABLES ON DISPLAY MORE OF VEGETABLES ON SALE / PRICE TAGS WOMEN SELLING TOMATOES TOMATOES ON SALE ONIONS ON SALE (SOUNDBITE) (Lingala) MARKET VENDOR, MARIE JOSE MIDEKA SAYING: "Our businesses have been disrupted for a while because people prefer buying their vegetables in the supermarkets and most of those supermarkets are owned by foreigners. These foreigners have come and disrupted our business, because they import their products and we can't sell ours." VARIOUS OF STANDS AT AGRICULTURE FAIR/COOKING OIL ON DISPLAY (SOUNDBITE) (French) DIRECTOR GENERAL, PROJECT FOR THE PROMOTION OF MICRO FINANCING FUND, JEAN-CLAUDE THETIKA SAYING: "It should be more than tackling poverty or improving the health of the population, or even entrepreneurship. You can't always buy containers of clothes from China in order to resell them here. We can cultivate and make our food, so that these vendors can have something to sell. Ask these vendors how much one pineapple costs and they will tell you its 5 US dollars, can you believe that? Sometimes people think that it costs that much because it's imported but the truth is that it's from here. It cost that much because production costs are high, because farmers are not supported. I think we should stop just talking about agriculture and put our words into action." VARIOUS OF CHILDREN LOOKING AT LIVESTOCK AT THE FAIR
- Embargoed: 7th September 2017 16:40
- Keywords: agriculture food security farm produce food imports arable land
- Location: KINSHASA, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO
- City: KINSHASA, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO
- Country: Congo, Democratic Republic of
- Topics: Economic Events
- Reuters ID: LVA0016VINMMV
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: A fair showcasing the latest farming tools, produce and financing options for farmers is hoping to draw more attention towards agriculture in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The ten-day-long event attracted over 100 exhibitors displaying fresh animal and vegetable produce like spinach, tomatoes, cassava leaves and beans grown across the country.
Organisers say they want to encourage more Congolese to farm on a larger scale.
Congo has 80 million hectares of arable land and some 70 percent of the population works in farming but most of them are involved in subsistence agriculture.
According to government figures, the country spent 1.5 billion US dollars on food imports last year.
"Through this fair, we want the people to get more involved in agriculture, something that will make them want to work with the soil. Because it's the soil that nourishes men. As they say, we are a country that has been blessed by God. We have 80 million hectares of arable land, which represents 60 percent of arable land in Africa, and 50 percent of arable land in the world," said fair founder, Congo's Minister of Provincial Agriculture and Rural Development, Magloir Kabemba.
Congo's per capita agricultural production has been in decline since the 1960s and 70 percent of its population lives on under a dollar a day, according to the agriculture and rural development ministry.
Authorities say they plan to use vast tracts of arable land to produce food, create jobs and wean the economy off its dependence on mining.
But the sector faces many challenges, such as access to crops and funding.
Experts say small scale farmers should get more support and improved farming methods and equipment made available through microfinance programs.
"The first question that we need to ask is whether a farmer in the village gets access to funding, that's the first thing. The second thing is that even those who are able to cultivate have no roads to transport their produce. The government should come up with measures to help a farmer who doesn't have the means to sell what they have cultivated," said fair visitor Augustain Bulayimu.
A poor road network to transport produce to market centres mean much of what is consumed in cities is imported.
As a result, Congo has been one of the country's worst hit by rising global food prices linked to high oil and transport costs.
"Our businesses have been disrupted for a while because people prefer buying their vegetables in the supermarkets and most of those supermarkets are owned by foreigners. These foreigners have come and disrupted our business, because they import their products and we can't sell ours," said one market vendor Marie Jose Mideka.
Although much of Congo's poor growth in agriculture has been blamed on conflict and the limitations of a badly performing economy, experts say the government has failed to prioritise farming.
"It should be more than tackling poverty or improving the health of the population, or even entrepreneurship. You can't always buy containers of clothes from China in order to resell them here. We can cultivate and make our food, so that these vendors can have something to sell. Ask these vendors how much one pineapple costs and they will tell you its 5 US dollars, can you believe that? Sometimes people think that it costs that much because it's imported but the truth is that it's from here. It cost that much because production costs are high, because farmers are not supported. I think we should stop just talking about agriculture and put our words into action," said Jean-Claude Thetika, a Director General of a project for the promotion of micro financing fund.
Congo is dealing with political instability stemming from President Joseph Kabila's refusal to step down when his mandate expired last December and a struggling economy.
Analysts fear the country will be unable to realise long-awaited agricultural reform for some time to come. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
- Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2017. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
- Usage Terms/Restrictions: None
