July 13, 2021
BY UNCLE SANKARA
There is proof from our 60 years of independence that various donor funding for agricultural development to previous governments has not reflected the plight of the people in their quest to be self-sufficient especially in our local crops production.
What is expected of us at this stage considering the millions of dollars that has been poured in over the years is that, Sierra Leone will be amongst other nations of the world in food self-sufficiency mainly in the growth of our main crops such as rice, vegetables, fruits, animal husbandry, horticulture etc.
We shall no longer have to depend in buying onions and rice from other nations of the world.
Our terrain unlike other desert countries has soil advantage, tolerable tropical climate for any plant of tropical growth.
For years, the agricultural sector was full of technocrats with no tools to man, an agreeable greenery forest used as haven for animals and singing birds in a neighborhood were its inhabitants enjoyed somber of night wind and sleep in empty stomach.
Since President Bio took up office on April 4th 2018, for the first time in our political annals, President Bio has increased the annual subvention to the Ministry of Agriculture. The Ministry has in turn constructed feeder roads to facilitate the crops for sale in nearest markets.
To curb down the annual expenditure of $248,000,000 in the importation of rice alone, President Bio has given shorter notice to all rice importers that come next season that money will be spent to buy our home grown rice.
A $10 million soft loan is available for direct investment to farmers in the private sector capacitated with machines, seedlings and periodic visits by experts in all farming Districts in Sierra Leone.
President Maada Bio believes that agricultural Revolution is the appropriate methodology to solve poverty, high mortality rate, malnutrition and even reduce politicization rate. More associated socio-economic activities will come in to effect, decentralization of will take its cause, electricity and water availability will be unquestionable, industrialization of our food crops will create employment.
Example of this, is like turning coffee and cacao in to a manufacturing design in tins and packages, rice will be blended in to powder, fruits converted in to drinks and vegetables will follow its own imagination.
His Excellency President Maada Bio`s target is simple, if 100 farmers could come out of any district to cultivate a 10acre land per family when it is multiplied by 12 districts with the exception of the Western Urban/ Rural district, our donors will not hesitate to add more.
To achieve this, President Bio have also empowered the small and medium enterprise development agency (SMEDA) with a 26 billion Leones loan for the business community to assist their famer relatives in the farming season in terms of their daily needs.
President Bio have assisted our local farmers to abandon the traditional method of farming which yields poor production by introducing mechanization to more than triple the production of our crops when harvested for sale in the local market.