Page 23 - AA 2023 Year Book Website

Comoros

COMOROS: AFRICAN DEVELOPMENT BANK PROVIDES

NEARLY €6 MILLION TO BOOST FOOD PRODUCTION

support intensified production of maize, a guarantee fund for producers of agricul-
potatoes, and sweet potatoes through the tural inputs and feed importers.
use of climate resilient certified seeds More than 14,000 households, about
and varieties. The funding will also help 70,000 people, living on the country’s
boost poultry production and the supply three islands—Grande-Comoros, Anjouan
of eggs and chicken for consumption. and Mohéli – will benefit from the project.
Agricultural producers in the country Beneficiaries are covered by a dozen ru-
The Board of Directors of the African will receive 270 tons of maize and potato ral economic development centres and
Development Bank Group has approved a seeds and 300,000 sweet potato vines. 400 professional agricultural organiza-
€5.76 million grant to the Comoros to in- They will also receive 75 tons each of DAP tions, 55% of which are owned by women.
crease food production and enhance the binary fertilizer, NPK (nitrogen, phospho- To address the impact of rising food
resilience of its food system. The move rus, and potassium) fertilizer and urea fer- prices resulting from the war in Ukraine,
comes as the country has experienced ris- tilizer, as well as phytosanitary products. the Board of Directors of the African De-
ing food prices due to the war in Ukraine. Under the project, farmers will also take velopment Bank Group on 20 May 2022
The grant funds will come from the Af- delivery of four tractors and 20 power til- approved a $1.5 billion African Emer-
rican Development Bank’s Transition Sup- lers. Sixteen laying and broiler houses gency Food Production Facility. It has be-
port Facility, a mechanism to help fragile will be built to house 160,000 day-old gun providing quality seeds (wheat, rice,
African states consolidate peace, build chicks (broiler and laying). About 10,780 maize, and soybean), fertilizers and other
resilient institutions, stabilize their econo- producers will receive training in the pro- support services to 20 million farmers
mies, and lay the foundations for inclusive duction, processing and conservation of across Africa. The goal is to produce an
growth. maize, potatoes, and sweet potatoes. Fur- additional 38 million tons of food over the
Under the Emergency Agricultural Pro- ther, 3,220 poultry farmers will be trained next two years, with an estimated $12 bil-
duction Support Project, the grant will in breeding techniques and poultry man- lion value.
agement. Lastly, the project will establish

A MISSION TO VALIDATE FOOD SAFETY-RELATED

DATA IN THE UNION OF COMOROS

Missions to validate the data gathered tional consultant, a validation mission was Production (Tonnes) of some agricultural
on the food control systems in the island carried out which involved field visits, commodities in Comoros (2020- 2021)
nations of Comoros and Seychelles were meeting with Competent Authorities for
conducted by two teams of international food safety, identifying data gaps, and Item 2020 Flag 2021 Flag
consultants as part of an ongoing two-year verifying facts with multiple stakeholders. Bananas 46796.67 E 46750.38 E
project to strengthen governance around In Comoros, visits and technical meet- Cassava, fresh 65842.67 I 66069.84 I
food safety and plant health in 11 African ings took place with academic institutions, Cloves (whole stems), raw 6762.53 I 7071.8 I
Union countries. consumer associations and food business Cocoa beans 42.53 E 42.51 E
The project, funded by the European operators in the islands of Moroni, Moheli Coconuts, in shell 102000 T 102596.8 I
Union and spearheaded by a team of ex- and Anjouan. Coffee, green 139.13 E 139.8 E
perts from FAO, began activities last No- The entire process will culminate in
vember in the Union of Comoros and Sey- the development of a strategic analysis Groundnuts, excluding shelled 999.03 I 991.64 E
chelles where focal points underwent a and a costed plan aimed at strengthen- Maize (corn) 6299.14 E 6288.7 E
series of trainings on the food control sys- ing the countries’ respective food control Onions and shallots, green 256.15 E 257.27 E
tem assessment tool and on the process of systems. Other fruits, n.e.c. 3994.54 I 4011.36 I
collecting data around multiple indictors Other pulses n.e.c. 14830.78 E 14801.92 E
and across multiple ministries and agen- Comoros and the Seychelles were the Other stimulant, spice and
cies that form the food control system of first two countries to implement the as- aromatic crops, n.e.c. 62.53 I 62.74 I
both countries. sessment and will be the first to complete Other vegetables, fresh n.e.c. 4470.65 I 4405.76 E
it.
After a four-month data collection pe- Pigeon peas, dry 399.77 E 403.48 E
riod, assisted by the FAO team and a na- The project, co-signed by the Govern- Potatoes 709.3 E 709.86 E
ment falls within the Sanitary and Phytos-
anitary (SPS) Policy Framework for Africa Rice 31247.9 E 31135.06 E
developed by the African Union (AU) to Sweet potatoes 7313.42 E 7297.76 E
spur trade among AU Member States and Taro 10985.57 E 11026.81 E
is implemented in close collaboration Tomatoes 689.07 I 693.86 I
with the African Union Commission Divi- Vanilla, raw 20.71 E 20.63 E
sion for Rural Economy and Agriculture
(AUC DARBE). Yams 4772.58 I 4800.52 I
E : Estimated value | I : Imputed value | Source: FAO Statistical Division 2022
Arab Agriculture 2023 21