AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT: Civil Society Organizations Charge ECOWAS MPs on Improved Political Will.

Civil Society Organizations on Wednesday called on the Parliament of the Economic Community of West African States Commission (ECOWAS) to legislate policies that will improve political wills to making Agriculture more sustainable in Africa. They maintained that Agriculture is a business and there is need to grow food to feed the population. Addressing Parliamentarians at the ongoing delocalized meeting of the Joint Committee on Agriculture, Environment and Natural Resources/ Infrastructure/ Energy and Mines/ Industry and Private Sector in Bissau, the President of the Farmers Union of Liberia and 1st Vice President of the Roppa Monrovia-Liberia, Josephine George Francis said more is expected from MPs at addressing the challenges of Agriculture in the sub-region. Speaking on a topic, “Farmers Organizations Collaboration with ECOWAS for Agriculture Production, Food and Nutrition Security in Our Region, Mrs. Francis said most countries in the region have not come up to the benchmark of increasing the budget to 10% for Agriculture towards achieving the Sustainable development Goals for 2030. She said Agriculture can create millions of employment for Africans, hence the need for the Political Will that will not only end at drafting policies but that will ensure that the policies are well implemented. “Agriculture is a business and we need to grow food to feed our population, so our government in the region especially in West Africa have to increase the budget; "We also have the sustainable development goal for 2030 and most countries have not come up to the benchmark of increasing the budget to 10% for Agriculture; "Agriculture is a major employment for millions of Africans, so the political will have to be there, not only the policies are written but implementation of the policies; "Until we can do that, you know now with the climate change, the coronavirus, the war in Russia, Over 6 billion of our money went back to Russia and Ukraine for ore and wheat, we can grow it here, let us start the investment in our research institution, let’s start the investment in our best to get private sector, the entire value chain to grow agriculture”she said. Speaking further, the President of the Farmers Union of Liberia who frowned at the difficulty faced by women and youths in getting lands for farming in some countries, said government should provide intervention to help women and youths especially those interested in farming. She also wants MPs to develop ideas that will aid investment in agriculture as well as ensuring increased budgetary allocation to the sector. “Access to land is very difficult, women willing to buy land but they don’t have money. How can they get money to purchase land, that’s another political will. Help the women in different clans to have lands, help the youths to have land, making agriculture attractive to them and they will be able to invest. And parliament they have the agriculture committee and they have the oversight of agriculture development and they have the oversight of the ministry of agriculture, so they all need to come to the table to start talk about investment in agriculture. They are the decision makers and who are the farmers, who are the rural people, they are the constituents they are living and drowning and deing in poverty. Where is the balance? So they need to be told that the Civil Society are saying you need to make sure that Agriculture is an opportunity for employment and your constituencies are living in poverty so make sure we strengthen the policies, make sure the budgets are increase so our young people and women can be able to have a sustainable liveliness to the family” she said.