Agriculture and food security projects launched in E. Equatoria

By Ijoo Bosco

November 23, 2013 (TORIT) – The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations launched two development projects in Torit on Saturday in collaboration with the Eastern Equatoria state ministry of agriculture and animal resources.

The deputy governor Jerome Gama Surur officially opened the food security information system and agriculture commercialisation projects while calling for the FAO to continue to help Eastern Equatoria’s farmers by building a seed testing laboratory and facilities for breed livestock.

Surur pointed out that livestock reproduction was essential for food security in the state and urged the agricultural partners to provide more guidance to the community in order to protect the environmental resources in Eastern Equatoria state.

The UN’s food and agricultural representative to South Sudan, Dr. Sue Lautze, said that the project, which is funded by the Italian government, aims to improve food security through the commercialisation of agricultural sector in marginalised areas either side of the border between South Sudan and Kenya.

Eastern Equatoria’s minister of agriculture, forestry, irrigation, cooperatives and rural development, John Ochan Bongomin, hailed the Italian government for supporting the initiative which will focus on women and youth.

Ochan added that, by promoting livelihood diversification in rural households through the development of small and medium scale enterprises the project will contribute immensely to food security.

When levels of production are increased and access to markets are made possible livelihoods become more stable, he said.

(ST)