Kinshasa April 26th, 2021 (CPA).- The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) will soon be endowed with a strategic document for a sustainable agricultural policy, in order to promote industrial agricultural sectors with zero deforestation in accordance with globally recognized standards, indicates a statement from the Ministry of Agriculture received Saturday at the CPA. According to the statement, the absence of an agricultural policy was identified as one of the major causes of the underperformance of the agricultural sector in the DRC. The observation is that the country’s agricultural production comes mainly from traditional peasant agriculture, which provides the bulk of its income to the rural population, i.e. more than 70% of the total population. To meet the major challenges in the context of the implementation of the Sustainable Management of Agriculture (GDA) project financed by the National REDD Fund (FONAREDD), continues the same source, the World Food Fund (FAO) s ‘is committed to supporting the Congolese government in the development of an agricultural policy, the formulation process of which was launched in early December 2020, and the outcome is expected in the first half of 2021. « The sustainable agricultural policy under development should allow the country to transform sustainably, into real wealth, its great agricultural and climatic potential which lends itself to all tropical crops, and thus fight against the food insecurity to which the Congolese communities face, ”the statement said.
Responding to the challenges of Congolese agriculture
To meet the challenges of agriculture in the DRC, the Ministry of Agriculture believes that the development of a sustainable agricultural policy should, moreover, make it possible to meet the challenges of securing and modernizing agricultural production systems. These will sustainably improve the productivity of agricultural sectors and value chains while respecting the objectives of reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD +), in particular the fight against soil impoverishment and deforestation. and forest degradation. These changes will be possible thanks in particular to better access to factors of production, to markets and to the improvement of the legal environment and governance and the fight against malnutrition and food insecurity and the mobilization of consequent investments, public and private. The latter, supports the press release from the Ministry of Agriculture, allow all actors in the agricultural sector to fully play their role in the sustainable modernization of the country and with respect for the environment, biodiversity and forest ecosystems. “To achieve these objectives, the agricultural policy development process will imperatively need to be inclusive and participatory, involving all key stakeholders, including public services, civil society, farmers’ organizations, research, universities and others. the technical and financial partners, ”concluded the source.