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(HERALD, XINHUA) Africa urged to beef up capacity amid global challenges

Africa urged to beef up capacity amid global challenges
Xinhua.

It is crucial for African countries to strengthen their capacity especially in the context of global challenges posed by sudden price hikes in food and crude oil, a senior official of the African Capacity Building Foundation (ACBF), one of the largest international institutions in Africa, has said.

Dr Edwin N. Forlemu, executive secretary of ACBF, told Xinhua in an exclusive interview that for most African countries, there is a need to reflect together on the issue of sudden hikes in the prices of food and crude oil.

He spoke highly of China’s contribution to the solution of the food shortage in Africa. "When I was growing up as a child in Cameroon, we used to hear of the Green Revolution.

"It was a major initiative, and at that time it was famous because we were inspired by the trends in the People’s Republic of China, which was putting much emphasis on the issue of growing food and making sure agriculture was the backbone of the economy," Forlemu said.

Forlemu explained that most African countries started off by focusing on agriculture. Later on, they discovered that in terms of international trade, the revenue from these products did not really meet expectations besides a few countries like Ghana, Cote d’Ivoire and Tanzania.

The revenues from these cash crops did not really compare with those from commodities such as crude oil. So, increasingly, many of these countries reduced their reliance on agricultural production. And this led to a situation in which, in the short term, they cannot grow enough food for their populations.

One last point is that these countries have not demonstrated policy-making leadership and foresight in ensuring that food security issues are addressed before they degenerate into crises, he said.

"Suddenly people wake up in the morning and there is a problem and governments are only reacting to the strikes on the streets whereas the phenomenon may be rooted in long-standing challenges that were not addressed," Forlemu pointed out.

He indicated that ACBF is a regional institution which finances initiatives to build capacity in policy making in government and outside government, including think tanks, so that advice is evidence-based and rooted in facts.

"We are encouraging these policy think tanks to analyse development issues dispassionately for governments to provide credible strategies for addressing the need to diversify the economic base of many African countries," he said.

As regards the implications of bio-fuel production, Forlemu indicated that it is not a major issue for many African countries because they do not have robust bio-fuel industries that will consume much needed agricultural products. — Xinhua.

Labels: ACBF, AFRICAN CAPACITY BUILDING FOUNDATION, AGRICULTURE, CAPACITY BUILDING, ENERGY

posted by MrK @ 11:29 PM