Work has begun on two major initiatives aimed at developing South Sudan’s agricultural sector into a greener, more sustainable and climate resilient mainstay of the country’s economy.
According to a press release, the projects funded by the European Union, Germany, The Netherlands and the UN, with a total of US$87.4 (84.4m Euros), were presented Monday to the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, Undersecretary, Dr John Kanisio.
The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the International Trade Centre (ITC) and the World Food Program (WFP) implement the Green and Resilient Agriculture and Climate Economy (GRACE) project in Central Equatoria, Lakes, Northern Bahr el-Ghazal and Western Equatoria.
The focus of the project, explained the press release, is equipping farmers with the knowledge and tools to improve and increase the production of sorghum, groundnuts, vegetables and honey as the climate crisis poses increasing challenges to the agricultural sector worldwide.
The EU provided US$36.5 million (35.2m Euros) while FAO, WFP and ICT provided another US$1.24 million (1.2 million Euros).
The press release quoted the Head of Cooperation of the EU Delegation to South Sudan,
Massimo Scalorbi, saying about 95 percent of South Sudan’s land is considered suitable for agriculture. However, much of its agricultural potential is still unrealized and resources untapped.
“Ensuring that natural resources are protected and utilized in a sustainable manner to support the country’s agriculture development and the country and communities resilience, are key component of this initiative,” said Scalorbi.
The Head of Cooperation of the German Embassy, Bjorn Niere, said Germany is proud to support the Team Europe action.
“We strongly believe that the insights of this project will advance the use of sustainable agricultural practices in the country,” he said.
FAO South Sudan Representative Meshack Malo indicated thatthe GRACE project comes at an opportune moment, amid rising calls to diversify South Sudan’s economy to generate non-oil revenue, in a sustainable manner.
WFP Representative to South Sudan Mary-Ellen McGroarty stated that despite the enormous potential in South Sudan, the climate crisis has been having a profound impact on communities and farmers, contributing to a deterioration in food security.
“We are at a critical juncture where we need to empower communities, through projects such as this, to improve agricultural productivity at the community and national level, despite the challenges they face,” she said.
ITC Country Manager for South Sudan Aklile Mitiku Habtemariam reaffrirmed the agency’s commitment to the collaborative initiative.
“We are grateful to the EU for their ongoing support and are pleased to collaborate with FAO and WFP as part of the united efforts of the UN System in the country,” said, Habtemariam.
Activities will be implemented in four states through producer groups and cooperatives, with women and youth mainly targeted to support their economic empowerment. It will target 22,770 smallholders household aiming to improve their incomes and strengthen the communities’ resilience.