Programs to cultivate food self-sufficiency

PROVINCE OF KUANZA SUL Working to attract investment for the key sectors of agriculture and fisheries, then mining whose potential has not been fully exploited

Carneiro: changes

he governor of the province of Kuanza Sul in the central coastal region of Angola hopes a resumption of political stability will encourage investors to return.
“We have seen changes in the quality of life of the people,” says General Higino Carneiro. “Our attention has been primarily focused on establishing political stability in this province, thus allowing for the promotion of national and foreign investment in economic development.”
The province offers many opportunities for investors. “Kuanza Sul has a lot of potential that other provinces don’t. We have fishing, farming, water, hydropower and mineral resources,” says Mr Carneiro.
His government is seeking as much outside help as it can get in order to harness this potential. “It is important for us to secure investment in these areas, firstly in agriculture and fisheries and then in the mining sector,” he adds.

The emphasis on agriculture reflects the fact that this is still the main source of employment in Kuanza Sul, but one whose potential has not been fully exploited due to a lack of financial resources.
“In our province, we have over 700,000 hectares of land available for investors and we have a good climate for agriculture,” says Mr Carneiro.
The governor has launched a scheme to promote rice cultivation in the Pinda region near Porto Amboim, the province’s second-largest city, with the aim of helping to reduce Angola’s dependence on food imports.
Another target of the government’s attempt to revive the sector is the cultivation of cotton in the western coastal regions. About 35,000 hectares of land are devoted to growing cotton and officials say a further 25,000 hectares could be made available. However, the outlook for some farmers in Kuanza Sul remains uncertain. The global slump in prices for coffee has hit the province’s agricultural sector hard.
Jose Manuel Ventura, director of the Angolan national coffee institute, warned recently that farmers had drastically cut back on planting and harvesting the crop because of their concern over marketing prospects.

Outside assistance
The farmers’ dilemma has not gone unnoticed in the outside world either, although assistance has so far been very limited. The Common Fund for Commodities, a worldwide organization linked to the United Nations, last year approved an $8.53 million plan to restore coffee plantations in Angola.
One of its aims is to help Angola become less dependent on revenues from petroleum exports. The scheme is also intended to encourage people to return to the land and resettle in abandoned coffee estates.
In parallel with its efforts to promote economic development, the provincial government is trying to improve social conditions for its people by bringing forward projects for the energy sector, health service and water supply.

Mr Carneiro recently stated that the province needed $150 million to fund socio-economic projects
but that his government budget could not meet this. The allocation of $56 million for rehabilitation and infrastructure projects for energy and water supply, health, education and agriculture is not sufficient, he says.
Attempts to raise living standards have been complicated by the arrival of thousands of people made homeless during Africa’s longest civil war. “The social programs are our priority and we will keep working on them,” the governor says.
Even as efforts continue to encourage growth in the agricultural sector, the provincial authorities want to diversify the economy. Kuanza Sul has substantial reserves of diamonds, gold, petroleum, iron ore, limestone and magnesium. “They are all open sectors for investors,” says Mr Carneiro.

Angola’s biggest diamond production company, Catoca, is located in Kuanza Sul. Reputedly the fourth-largest diamond company in the world, Catoca is estimated to account for about 70 per cent of Angola’s officially reported output of diamonds.
Kuanza Sul has an extensive coastline where clean bleaches are washed by the unpolluted waters of the South Atlantic Ocean. Officials say there are plans to develop these locations as watersport centers.

Opening up
Mr Carneiro wants to encourage the development of industry, trade and commerce in Kuanza Sul, particularly in the coastal urban areas around Porto Amboim and the provincial capital, Sumbe. “There is stability on the coast, but first we need to create the foundation for investment,” he says. That policy basically centers on projects to open up the country to the rest of the world.
“We are turning our attention towards the coast where, in addition to excellent roads, we have a commercial port,” he says. “And very soon, we foresee the construction of another commercial port.”