Transcript Regional Remote Sensing Unit

VIEWPOINT FROM SADC-FANR ON
FOOD SYSTEMS AND VULNERABILITY
RESEARCH INTERESTS
Presented at GECAFS Southern Africa Food Systems
and Vulnerability Workshop,
6 – 8 December 2004,
Gaborone,
Botswana.
Mr Bentry P. Chaura
Senior Economist/Statistician
SADC Directorate of Food, Agriculture and Natural Resources
HISTORY AND RATIONALE OF
SADC
Political motives
 Social motives
 Economic motives
The SADC vision
 A common future in a regional community that will
ensure economic well-being, improved standards of
living and quality of life, freedom, social justice,
peace and security for the peoples of Southern
Africa.
 The ultimate objective is the eradication of poverty.


THE SADC OBJECTIVES
Achieve development and economic growth,
alleviate poverty, enhance the standard and quality of
life of the peoples of Southern Africa and support the
socially disadvantaged;
Evolve common political values, systems and
institutions;
Promote and defend peace and security;
Promote self-sustaining development on the basis of
collective self-reliance and the interdependence of
Member States;
OBJECTIVES cont…
Achieve complementarity between national and
regional strategies and programmes;
Promote and maximize productive employment and
utilization of resources of the region;
Strengthen and consolidate the long-standing historical,
social and cultural affinities and links among the peoples
of the region
THE RISDP
Our agenda for the next 15 years.
RISDP =Regional Indicative Strategic Development Plan
Strategies
Further liberalize intra-regional trade (FTACustoms Union
Common Market) and become globally competitive
Sustainable food security
Infrastructure support for regional integration
Improve the availability of educated, skilled, healthy, flexible,
productive and efficient Human resources
Equality between gender
Strengthen Science &Technology, Information and Research,
Private Sector Development
SUSTAINABLE FOOD SECURITY
Problem Specification: Example (excl. DRC) reg. prdt
SADC: Cereal Production since 1990
30000
Production ('000 tonnes)
25000
20000
15000
10000
5000
0
1990
Maize
Wheat
1991
1992 1993
1994
1995 1996
Rice
Sorg/Millet
Tot. cereal
1997
1998 1999
Harve s t ye ar
2000
2001 2002
2003
2004
SUSTAINABLE FOOD SECURITY
Other Problems include:
• high dependence on rainfed agriculture;
• High
dependence
diversification;
on
maize
–
little
• Declining support to farmers;
• under-utilisation of land resources;
• poor
infrastructure
(transport,
markets,
communication, storage facilities) especially in
rural areas;
• High incidences of pests and diseases for
livestock and crops
MAJOR INTERVENTION AREAS FOR
SUSTAINABLE FOOD SECURITY
1. Ensuring Food Availability: Major components
such as:
- Food production, productivity and
profitability;
- Conservation management of natural
resources;
- Control and eradication of agro – pests and
diseases;
- Regional agricultural input
markets
development;
- Access to Agricultural land;
- Promotion of labour saving agric. support
systems;
- encouraging public and private investments.
etc
MAJOR INTERVENTION AREAS cont…
2. Ensuring Access to Food: through
• Promoting rural non-farm income
generating activities, including agroprocessing
• Promoting entrepreneurship development
in rural areas
• Promoting agri-business
• Promoting effective food storage systems
and preservation techniques.
MAJOR INTERVENTION AREAS cont…
3. Enhancing Nutritional Value of Food:
•Promoting standardization and improving quality
of processing, packaging, preparation and
preservation of food.
•Promoting consumer/food education and
awareness.
•Promoting the consumption of nutritious food,
especially among vulnerable groups, such as people
living with HIV/AIDS, under five children,
pregnant women and old people.
•Promoting effective co-ordination with other
stakeholders, particularly Water and Infrastructure.
MAJOR INTERVENTION AREAS cont…
4. Enhancing Disaster Preparedness:
•Broadening and strengthening the early warning
system to cover food availability, access to food and
information on staple food markets, including prices;
•Expanding and strengthening vulnerability
monitoring capabilities;
•Establishing a reserve facility and/or physical stocks
above national requirements; and promoting safety
nets.
•Adopting measures to ensure availability of and
access to agricultural inputs; and rehabilitating
infrastructure.
POSSIBLE RESEARCH INTERESTS
Required: Practical solutions to the region’s
identified problems
a) National level: What can MS do – eg to improve
production/ productivity / crop diversification/ etc ?
b) Regional level: What can be done at regional
level? How can regional integration be a vehicle to
solve the problems? – trade, specialization?
IN GENERAL: WHY DO WE SEEM NOT MAKING
ANY HEADWAY IN SOLVING THE PROBLEMS?
THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION.