By Sylvester Samba.
The Minister of Agriculture and Forestry, Dr. Abubakar Karim has officially launched the popularization of the country’s ‘National Cocoa, Coffee and Cashew Policies’. The event which took place on Tuesday 13th July, 2021 at the Conference Room of the Ministry was witnessed by both public and private stakeholders in the agricultural sector.
Solidaridad is the organization tasked with the mandate to undertake such a massive popularization across the country at different levels.
In Sierra Leone, Solidaridad aims at increasing productivity, improving processing of oil palm, enhancing food security through food banks and linking farmers to private sector actors to improve and sustain rural livelihoods.
According to the Agriculture Minister, the three policies will serve as a framework for his Ministry, its partners and other stakeholders in the cocoa, coffee and cashew program in Sierra Leone.
Dr. Karim added that these emerging crops have many attributes: economic, environmental and political. He further explained that, “with this in mind, the formulation of these policies was done through an extensive stakeholder consultative and participatory process including the EU Delegation in Sierra Leone, the BAFS Technical Assistance Team, the BAFS-PCU Impress Administrator, MAF Tree Crops Technical Staff, Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) Produce Monitoring Board (PMB), Cocoa, Coffee and Cashew famers, Private Sector Actors, specialize NGOs and other stakeholders in those crops` sector”.
The Minister of Agriculture maintained that robust action has already been taken by his Ministry, other line Ministries and partners to popularize the three policies thereby establishing appropriate trade regulation that will enhance participation and competition in the international market, including research and quality control.
On behalf of his Ministry, Dr. Karim expressed thanks and appreciation to President Julius Maada Bio and his government for prioritizing the three cash crops in his national agriculture transformation agenda.
He called on all concerned stakeholders to take ownership of the popularization and ensure that the needed information goes down to the last community. “I want to encourage all of you to join forces in making sure that policies do not remain on the shelves,” the Minister pleaded to the participants present at the popularization launching ceremony.
In his statement, the Project Manager Cooperation of the European Union Delegation in Sierra Leone, Mr. John Christian Abu-Kpawoh said that it gives them confidence at this stage that government and its implementing partners are already working together to make the policies a success.
He said cocoa, coffee and cashew are very important sources of income and employment. He stressed that the effectiveness of the three policies are now in the hands of Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, Solidaridad, Cotton Treeย Foundation and a number of public and private stakeholders in the sector.
Solidaridad Country Representative, Mr. Nicholas Jengre commended the consultants that put the three cash crops policies together. He also thanked the team that brought together the tools that will be used to send out the needed information at national, districts, chiefdoms, sections and towns. He concluded by extending his gratitude to the Minister of Agriculture and Forestry for officially launching the popularization of the three policies.
Other speakers present were representatives from: Cotton Tree Foundation, Sierra Leone Agricultural Research Institute, Produce Monitoring Board, National Authorizing Office, Private Sector Companies, Njala University, District Agriculture Officers and Boosting Agriculture and Food Security.
