COMESA, partners agree on regional staple food programme

COMESA, partners agree on regional staple food programme
By Fridah Zinyama
Thursday October 11, 2007 [04:00]

THE Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) and its cooperating partners have agreed to design a regional staple food programme. The regional staple food programme, which will include other member countries of the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP), seeks to improve food security in African countries that have potential to contribute to the continent's food basket.

According to the COMESA CAADP newsletter, the programme would initially focus on maize, cassava, beans and bananas but would expand to other staple foods in due course.

"The partners agreed to work with COMESA's CAADP agenda in the area of staples to build on existing programmes in the region," the newsletter stated.

The newsletter indicated that COMESA's designed programme would collaborate with various activities in the Intergovernmental Authority for Development which also seeks to improve food security in the region.

Earlier, agriculture permanent secretary Richard Chizyuka said agriculture remained a vital economic engine in all member states of COMESA.

Chizyuka said the region appreciated the effort COMESA was taking in increasing food production in the region.

"Of particular importance among COMESA's agricultural sector activities is in the area of arresting soil degradation through the design of an agricultural inputs strategy in collaboration with SADC," Chizyuka said. "We look forward to the full implementation of that initiative."

He added that COMESA's intervention was visible in the irrigation sub-sector through the fielding of experienced experts from India to identify priority interventions.

"We, in Zambia have prioritised the agricultural sector as the key sector for national development," Chizyuka added. "We trust that through the CAADP initiative, our member states will be fully supported to succeed in the agricultural sector."

He explained that Zambia was endowed with good soils, abundant water and diverse climate, which could be used for development and growth.

"For our part as government, we can assure you that agriculture will be getting the attention and support that it needs and that real efforts will be made to tap its potential for growth and the achievement of food security for all Zambians," said Chizyuka.