Allow me, first, to express my gratitude for the invitation conveyed to me to take part
in this imposing summit which signals a further stage in the relationship between
Africa and France. I am convinced that the debates to be held during the two
forthcoming days will significantly contribute to the new partnership that we are
building to our mutual benefit.
It is in that light that I wish to take the opportunity to acknowledge the unique role
assumed by France in promoting and defending African concerns, and express our
special tribute to President Jacques Chirac for his personal commitment to stimulate
and follow up the whole process which led to the launching of the New Partnership
for African Economic Development, NEPAD.
It is a great honour for me to open the debate on such an important topic for the
African continent, that of agricultural development, which we view as the response to
developmental priorities.
More than 70% of the African population relies on agriculture for its living, and the
bulk of its activities are associated with it, with a large portion of it being subsistence
agriculture. Production outputs and productivity of the agricultural sector in Africa
remain low, failing therefore to meet the food requirements of the continent, leading
to chronic starvation. All this is being further aggravated by cyclical weather
calamities. This is the reason why it becomes vital to monitor rivers, in order to make
for water shortages for agriculture in time of drought, and rein them in in case of
floods, without however endangering the environment.
This French-African summit will help find mechanisms and ways of cooperation,
collaboration and operations in partnership with a view to develop agriculture in
Africa. Within the NEPAD framework, the following problems pertaining to agriculture
have been identified:
-
low productivity of primary factors of production, including land and labour
-
HIV incidence on a large part of active rural manpower
-
climatic risks and uncertainties of agricultural yields
-
food insecurity and malnutrition
-
low investment in agriculture
-
lack of linkage between extension services and the food chain, including lack
of connections between the various stages of production, processing,
commercialisation and storage;
-
weakness of research and extension bodies, as well as the suppliers of
technologies adapted to farmers
Regarding agricultural development, NEPAD identified four immediate actions to be
achieved in order to raise food production in Africa. They are:
-
enlargement of agricultural areas under irrigation, and the setting up of soil
fertilization programs;
-
increasing labour productivity through training and dissemination of technical
knowledge in rural communities;
-
improvement of rural infrastructures and access to markets, through
betterment of road networks leading to rural areas;
-
multiplication of research and rural extension, in order to increase productivity
and sustainability.
We feel in that regard that the French-African partnership could, in the medium to
long term, focus on strengthening African capabilities at national and regional levels
to transform the continent’s agriculture, through the following operations:
-
development of new forms of partnership that ensure the transfer of
technologies and know-how, instead of traditional gifts
-
improved research into agriculture, animal husbandry, forestry and fishing
-
improvement in the quality of African products, particularly end products, to
better fit French standards and gain access to this country’s market;
-
development of agricultural extension services and rural infrastructures, such
as irrigation systems, supply of inputs, and animal health
-
development of agro-industries, including their funding
-
investment in the education of the rural folks about prevention and treatment
of HIV
Natural and human ressources in Africa are both sufficient and of quality; however,
they are not yet mobilised and utilized efficiently. NEPAD is therefore an opportunity
to mobilize resources, and the French-African partnership should help enable the
trading community in African countries to get significantly involved in sustainable
agro-industrial development.
In the past, development programs and politics were elaborated and enunciated from
outside Africa, and they enjoyed little participation and support from African
governments, which undermined the credibility that conditioned their sucessfull
implementation. On the other hand, the lack of expertise and capacities on the side
of African countries jeopardized the success of the development programs and
politics that had been delineated. Now, NEPAD opens up an opportunity to speed up
agricultural development in Africa, because the framework adopted for this initiative
departs from the past. The mobilization of local resources and a better coordination
between African countries themselves, through regional economic zones, such as
SADC and CEDEAO, create a context that did not exist previously.
In this process, the main challenge for Africa is the ability to keep growth at required
levels in order to reduce poverty and promote sustainable development. This
depends on factors such as the existence of infrastructures, the accumulation of
financial capital, the training of human resources, a just distribution of income, a
structural diversification in production, conditions enabling competition, the health
status of the population, and a proper protection of environment.
African leaders have learnt that peace, security, democracy, good governance,
human rights and a good economic management condition sustainable development.
Agriculture is the basis for any improvement in rural people livelihoods, it is the major
factor towards food security and any increase in exports, as well as towards the
improvement in other economic sectors. There cannot be human rights without
access to land, the major factor of agricultural production, and a prerequisite for
access to food.
In closing, I wish to reiterate our gratitude to France for its valuable role in
strengthening our relations, and I wish to call on France to continue to support our
common interests in various international fora.
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