West Africa to boost farming
2010-06-14 22:01
Dakar - Members of a 15-nation west African economic bloc met in Dakar on Monday to develop a plan to boost agricultural investment in the midst of a severe food crisis in parts of the region.
"The economic and financial crisis has increased the agricultural divide between northern and southern countries. We can not sit idly by," said Senegalese President Abdoulaye Wade at the opening of the meeting of the Economic Community of West African States (Ecowas).
"Our continent has the potential to counter this divide," Wade said.
The meeting, which continues until Thursday, has also been attended by envoys from the United Nations, African Union, European Union, several European countries and funding institutions.
Its objective is to develop a strategy for mobilising financial resources for agriculture.
Prospective donors include the World Bank, European Union, International Fund for Agricultural Development (Ifad) and member states of the regional organisation.
"Each country will present its programme of agricultural investment and say how much it will cost. The total costs submitted by countries will represent the cost of financing of the Ecowas regional investment programme," said Mohamed H'Midouche, an African Development Bank representative in Dakar.
Severe food crises in several countries of the Sahel affect an estimated 10 million people, according to UN humanitarian affairs chief John Holmes.
Two years ago, soaring food prices led to riots in several cities in West Africa.
- SAPA