On Jan. 17, 2018, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 3445, the AGOA and MCA Modernization Act. The legislation adds on to the original African Growth and Opportunity Act, or AGOA, which was passed into law on May 18, 2000, by the 106th Congress.
As an extension of AGOA, the AGOA and MCA Modernization Act encourages plans to promote trade and cooperation while also providing aid to countries that are AGOA eligible. The region of focus of the legislation is sub-Saharan Africa, with the goal being to build private sector growth. Under the bill, the President will be directed to create a website with information about AGOA along with encouraging embassies in chosen countries to promote export opportunities to the United States.
In addition, the bill would give the Millennial Challenge Corporation (MCC) the authority to develop a second concurrent compact with countries, provided the compact focuses on regional economic development. The ability to enter into a second compact will be limited to countries that demonstrate progress toward meeting the objectives of the first compact and capacity to handle an additional compact.
The MCC was created in 2004 by the Bush administration, with the aim to reduce poverty through economic growth. The MCC has committed more than $10 billion in 58 projects in 25 countries. Around 70 percent of this investment has gone into infrastructure projects like highways and ports and an increasing percentage is being invested in energy.
On the House floor prior to the vote, House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Rep. Ed Royce (R-CA-39) said that the AGOA and MCA Modernization Act “seeks to facilitate trade and private sector-led growth in poor but relatively well-governed countries, particularly in Africa, so they can grow their own way out of poverty.”
“Through AGOA, goods produced in eligible African countries enter the U.S. on a duty-free basis. To be eligible, countries must be committed to the rule of law, eliminating barriers to U.S. trade and investment, combating corruption and supporting counterterrorism activities. So AGOA advances U.S. interests on many levels.”
Trade being a driver of economic development and increased civilian participation in politics is one of the main arguments for passing the AGOA and MCA Modernization Act. Economists and experts agree that the legislation does not just benefit sub-Saharan Africa, but also the United States, as it helps create jobs and benefits consumers and companies through free-market principles.
Rep. Karen Bass (D-CA-37) was enthusiastic about the passage of the AGOA and MCA Modernization Act by a unanimous vote. Bass is a ranking member of the House Africa Subcommittee. She is an avid supporter of the legislation and said the policy would foster economic development, as well as strengthen the United States as an international leader and boost the domestic job market and economy.
The bill was introduced to the House by Rep. Royce. At the time the bill was initially introduced, Rep. Royce along with fellow representatives Bass, Eliot Engel (D-NY) and Chris Smith (R-NJ), stated that steering developing countries toward trade and away from aid helps African countries and women. Africa’s consumer spending nearing $1 trillion was what prompted the four to push for the passing of the AGOA and MCA Modernization Act.
The AGOA and MCA Modernization Act still needs to be approved by the Senate. The bill has been introduced by Sens. Ben Cardin (D-MD), Johnny Isakson (R-GA) and Chris Coons (D-DE) as S.832. Sen. Coons stated that it is vital that Congress does all it can do to promote economic growth in developing countries and expand American business access to foreign markets. He is excited that the act will encourage trade with sub-Saharan Africa.
The recent passing of the AGOA and MCA Modernization Act in the House may give the legislation the momentum it needs to soon be accepted in the Senate. Visit The Borgen Project Action Center to contact your representative about this critical legislation.
– Blake Chambers
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
Female Education in Lesotho Highest in the World
The gender gap favoring males in education is largest in low-income countries. But in Lesotho, a small, poor, landlocked country surrounded by South Africa, the gender gap in education favors females. The ratio of female-to-male enrollment rates in secondary education is the highest in the world, with 1.6 females enrolled for every male.
“This is really, really unusual in the developing world,” says Theresa Ulicki, a professor of Gender and Development Studies at Dalhousie University.
Female education in Lesotho is a result of male outmigration to South Africa, which was triggered by high unemployment and poverty. In the late 20th century, over half of the Basotho male population emigrated to South Africa for better wage-earning opportunities. Because cross-border migration to South Africa was almost exclusively male — with most Basotho males staying in South Africa from adolescence to retirement — women outnumbered men in the general population by a ratio of four-to-one.
Employment rates of Basotho men in South Africa have since declined, but the same norms govern gender differences in education and labor force participation. Most males of primary school age are involved in cattle-herding— a practice that requires young boys to withdraw from school and tend cattle for their families — and many male adolescents withdraw from school to find employment in South Africa.
Equal access to education and employment does not necessarily result in gender equality. In Lesotho, the gender gap in education is in some sense evidence of the lower perceived value of women. Women’s literacy rates and other levels of education are higher than those for men, yet most Basotho women work jobs that have lower status and pay.
Other indications of gender inequality in Lesotho include gender‐based violence and related developmental problems. Gender-based violence is a serious problem in Lesotho, where females are marginalized, making them susceptible to HIV/AIDS, abuse and rape. In 2011, the rate of sexual assault in Lesotho was among the highest in the world, with 88.6 rape cases per 100,000 female inhabitants. In 2016, Lesotho had one of the highest numbers of new HIV infections worldwide. Illegal marriages are also prevalent, with 19 percent of Basotho females under age 18 being forced into illegal marriages, often with older men.
Education is a central element in economic development and social progress. However, female education in Lesotho shows that ensuring equal access to education is an important but insufficient step toward social development.
– Gabrielle Doran
Photo: Flickr
Two Current Programs for Sustainable Agriculture in Nigeria
Nigeria is the most populous country in Africa, the seventh largest in the world, and is growing faster than any other nation in the top fifteen of that list. When policy makers address the issue of a growing world and necessary advances in food technology, Nigeria must be a key part of that solution. Below are snapshots of two current programs working to improve sustainable agriculture in Nigeria.
A New Variety of Cassava
Catholic Relief Services (CRS) is working with farmers in Nigeria to improve sustainable production of cassava. Cassava is a staple crop in tropical countries worldwide and has a number of advantages that make it a reliable crop in food-stressed areas. The plant is drought-resistant, can grow in marginal soils and has year-round availability.
CRS recently began a four-year project in Nigeria called Sustainable Cassava Seed Systems. The project delivers improved strains of cassava to the participants, along with education on maintaining and marketing the improved crops. According to one local farmer, the variety delivered by the CRS program produces more than three times the harvest compared to local varieties of cassava. This result is turning subsistence farmers in Nigeria into agricultural entrepreneurs, and ones who can return investments to their communities.
Nigeria is the world’s largest producer of cassava, and the crop provides more calories per acre than any other tropical staple. As a key item in feeding a growing world population, increasing the sustainability and efficiency of growing cassava can have an inordinate impact in the elimination of global poverty.
Youth Initiative for Sustainable Agriculture
Besides being one of the largest and fastest growing countries in the world, Nigeria is also one of the youngest. Having such a large proportion of youth in a country can severely impact tax education and other infrastructure, but youth is not always a burden — in Nigeria, the youth are a formidable political presence, and youth organizations often play a major part in other social realms as well.
YISA, the Youth Initiative for Sustainable Agriculture, was founded in 2012 in Abjua and has a cooperative group of young people from 15-40 years old that run several programs to support and encourage sustainable agriculture in Nigeria.
Among YISA’s current programs are the Environmental Sustainability Project, the Youth Agricultural Reorientation Program and the Market Linkage Program. These programs promote education in the realm of environmentally responsible agriculture, introduce urban and unemployed youth to farming skills and productive agricultural pursuits and develop commercial outlets for sustainable agricultural products in Nigerian Markets.
While sustainable agriculture in Nigeria stagnated somewhat in the late twentieth century (in large part because of the nation’s enthusiasm for oil revenues), the Nigerian government and international organizations have returned to focus on Nigeria’s impressive agricultural potential. In a nation of over 180 million people, it comes as no surprise that the programs highlighted here merely scratch the surface of current activity. As these and other projects mature and develop, Nigeria will become an ever-larger presence in sustainable food production in the 21st century.
– Paul Robertson
Photo: Flickr
The AGOA and MCA Modernization Act Passes in the House
As an extension of AGOA, the AGOA and MCA Modernization Act encourages plans to promote trade and cooperation while also providing aid to countries that are AGOA eligible. The region of focus of the legislation is sub-Saharan Africa, with the goal being to build private sector growth. Under the bill, the President will be directed to create a website with information about AGOA along with encouraging embassies in chosen countries to promote export opportunities to the United States.
In addition, the bill would give the Millennial Challenge Corporation (MCC) the authority to develop a second concurrent compact with countries, provided the compact focuses on regional economic development. The ability to enter into a second compact will be limited to countries that demonstrate progress toward meeting the objectives of the first compact and capacity to handle an additional compact.
The MCC was created in 2004 by the Bush administration, with the aim to reduce poverty through economic growth. The MCC has committed more than $10 billion in 58 projects in 25 countries. Around 70 percent of this investment has gone into infrastructure projects like highways and ports and an increasing percentage is being invested in energy.
On the House floor prior to the vote, House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Rep. Ed Royce (R-CA-39) said that the AGOA and MCA Modernization Act “seeks to facilitate trade and private sector-led growth in poor but relatively well-governed countries, particularly in Africa, so they can grow their own way out of poverty.”
“Through AGOA, goods produced in eligible African countries enter the U.S. on a duty-free basis. To be eligible, countries must be committed to the rule of law, eliminating barriers to U.S. trade and investment, combating corruption and supporting counterterrorism activities. So AGOA advances U.S. interests on many levels.”
Trade being a driver of economic development and increased civilian participation in politics is one of the main arguments for passing the AGOA and MCA Modernization Act. Economists and experts agree that the legislation does not just benefit sub-Saharan Africa, but also the United States, as it helps create jobs and benefits consumers and companies through free-market principles.
Rep. Karen Bass (D-CA-37) was enthusiastic about the passage of the AGOA and MCA Modernization Act by a unanimous vote. Bass is a ranking member of the House Africa Subcommittee. She is an avid supporter of the legislation and said the policy would foster economic development, as well as strengthen the United States as an international leader and boost the domestic job market and economy.
The bill was introduced to the House by Rep. Royce. At the time the bill was initially introduced, Rep. Royce along with fellow representatives Bass, Eliot Engel (D-NY) and Chris Smith (R-NJ), stated that steering developing countries toward trade and away from aid helps African countries and women. Africa’s consumer spending nearing $1 trillion was what prompted the four to push for the passing of the AGOA and MCA Modernization Act.
The AGOA and MCA Modernization Act still needs to be approved by the Senate. The bill has been introduced by Sens. Ben Cardin (D-MD), Johnny Isakson (R-GA) and Chris Coons (D-DE) as S.832. Sen. Coons stated that it is vital that Congress does all it can do to promote economic growth in developing countries and expand American business access to foreign markets. He is excited that the act will encourage trade with sub-Saharan Africa.
The recent passing of the AGOA and MCA Modernization Act in the House may give the legislation the momentum it needs to soon be accepted in the Senate. Visit The Borgen Project Action Center to contact your representative about this critical legislation.
– Blake Chambers
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
Development Projects in Kosovo Promoting Equality
USAID Engagement for Equity
This program works to support local civil society groups in developing policies to promote greater equity for marginalized groups and communities in Kosovo. This project has had a broad reach and has made especially notable improvements in gender equity. Kosovo has relatively strong protections for women on the books, but few women are aware of their rights and often have difficulty taking advantage of them because of the patriarchal culture in Kosovo that is common in many Balkan societies. This problem is especially pronounced when it comes to property rights, as women traditionally did not own or inherit property.
USAID recently worked with Kosova Women 4 Women to organize a class that taught women what their rights are and how to exercise them. While this seems small, this is an example of development projects in Kosovo that have a much broader reach than they seem. Women who have property in their names or register property jointly with their husbands have a much easier time accessing credit, which helps them to start small businesses, promoting the growth of the entire economy as well as greater financial security for women.
LuxDev Health Sector Support Programme
Luxembourg has been a major donor to Kosovo’s health sector for many years and has contributed to many successful projects. This latest project is expected to be completed in 2019 and will build on the successes of previous projects. Its goals primarily center around improving institutional capacity and management to ensure full implementation of previous achievements, as well as increasing access to and affordability of care.
InTerDev 2
InTerDev 2 is the latest in a series of projects supported by the UNDP to reduce economic insecurity, particularly in southern Kosovo and among minorities and women. Its primary goals are to bring down the high unemployment rate, address underemployment and precarious employment, improve public services, and end the socioeconomic exclusion of women and minority groups. The plan is to do this by expanding the capacity of municipalities and local actors, especially in rural areas, to assist underserved populations, supporting small and medium-sized business owners who wish to modernize and expand and by promoting job growth at the local level.
Kosovo Safety and Security Project
This comprehensive approach to security, spearheaded by the U.N. but also supported by several EU member states, seeks to improve security in Kosovo by focusing on small arms control, countering violent extremism, and improvements in policing. Recent years have seen multiple development projects in Kosovo focus on addressing violent crime and cracking down on the illegal trade and possession of small firearms and explosive materials. The Safety and Security Project seeks to build on best practices learned from these projects to strengthen and empower Kosovo’s law enforcement agencies. Another effect of this project will be to bring Kosovo into compliance with EU regulations regarding firearms, helping to put Kosovo on a more equal footing with its neighbors. It is also hoped that the root causes of illegal weapons possession can be mitigated, helping to make Kosovo safer.
Institutional and Technical Support for the Water Supply System
This project is a follow-up to the 2016 project of the same name, both organized by Luxembourg. The 2016 project saw the creation of the Mitrovica Regional Water Company and supporting infrastructure. The current project aims to strengthen the management and customer service capabilities of the company and enable it to run more efficiently from a business standpoint. This comes as other development projects in Kosovo are also working to strengthen and support private sector activity. Also included in the current project are the use of satellite imagery to identify leaks and the replacement of some aging infrastructure to make the water supply system more efficient and more environmentally friendly by reducing the amount of water wasted as a result of leaks.
These projects all promise to jump-start economic development in Kosovo and lift people out of poverty. They will all have a major impact on quality of life and some even promise to help calm the lingering tensions in Kosovo as a result of the conflict. Improved economic conditions and stronger legal frameworks will also make major strides towards rectifying the ongoing issues surrounding property ownership. Once this is resolved, the credit access problem in Kosovo will also become much more manageable. Taken together, these improvements promise to strengthen Kosovo’s economy and bring down the poverty rate, which is good for everyone.
– Michaela Downey
Photo: Flickr
Education Needs Driving Humanitarian Aid to Brazil
Poverty in Brazil is attributed mostly to child abandonment. Mothers and fathers are leaving their children in the streets due to low incomes, health problems such as HIV/AIDS, domestic violence and a lack of resources for their other offspring. With the harsh conditions on the streets, few children live to see their 18th year.
There are roughly eight million impoverished children living in Brazil. Due to a lack of education and resources, they resort to street performing, thievery and begging to survive. In many cases, they are taken in by drug lords and other criminals and used as drug runners and prostitutes. With little to no proper nutrition, they are feeding themselves with the refuse found in garbage bins and dumps. Without an education or a family to support them, they will most likely remain unable to become employed.
A lack of education is a terrible dilemma for the 26 percent of the population who live below the poverty line. According to the Brazil Without Misery Program, 4.8 million people are living on no income whatsoever. The program teamed up with Bolsa Familia to give humanitarian aid to Brazil and its people. They provide education and basic nutritional needs to low-income families around the country. The families receive cash benefits, and in return, they must work to keep their children in school and follow the basic health and vaccination program.
The United States is set to donate $815,000 to Brazil this year. The aid is deepening the bond between the two countries and is providing humanitarian aid to Brazil in ways that are desperately needed. The money is planned to be used to deploy new technologies in healthcare and to decrease the AIDS problem spreading among young mothers. This will hopefully lower the numbers of orphaned children, and in the process, will increase the chances of them receiving an education.
With projects around the country working to promote education and healthcare among the youth, the government has started making these needs their focus. It is providing internal humanitarian aid to Brazil itself. Women are receiving better hygiene education, children are receiving healthcare and the government is working to house homeless teens and provide them with schooling.
Politicians are fighting to make civilian welfare a priority. They are working to have the government approach the poor rather than the other way around. Promoting civilian education and welfare has greatly benefited the economy as well as other countries in the process. For instance, the World Food Programme opened an office in Brazil, overseeing school feeding and food security for families and students. The program provides meal assistance for 50 countries, including 47 million children.
Brazil has since seen positive growth in linking public policy with school meals and security. School attendance has increased steadily by 200,000 annually for the past 10 years. Education is becoming a priority for families as well as the country itself.
Brazil has elevated in ranks in recent years, becoming the ninth-largest economy in the world. This shift has led to it becoming a donor country for the first time in 2008, giving 53 percent of its donations to Africa and the rest to surrounding countries in Latin America.
While the country continues to receive assistance and is working tirelessly to promote education with a wider reach, Brazil is spreading its wings and dipping into the donor pool. The world has yet to see the difference this growing country can make.
– Emily Degn
Photo: Flickr
Which State Has the Most Representatives and Why
In the U.S., national representatives are divided into two groups, the Senate and the House of Representatives. The House of Representatives is meant to represent the people, not the state, while the Senate represents the states on an equal basis. This was an agreement implemented by the Great Compromise in 1787. This means that the House has a system which determines which state has the most representatives and which state or states have the least.
Two senators are elected from each state to serve in the Senate, a part of the legislative branch of the government known as Congress. This is a fixed number implemented by the United States Constitution (article 1, section 3, clause 1). There are never more than 100 senators serving in Congress at a time.
However, the House of Representatives, the other half of Congress, works a little differently. While representatives, also known as congressmen and congresswomen, are still elected, the system is based on population. This determines which state has the most representatives. Therefore, larger states with a bigger population will have the most representatives, versus smaller states with lower populations. Each member of the House represents a set number of constituents.
The House never has more than 435 representatives serving in Congress at a time. Each state is guaranteed at least one representative in the House. This law has been in effect since 1913 and is enforced by Public Law 62-5.
The House and the Senate assemble in Washington D.C. at least once a year. These meetings are called sessions and begin at noon on January 3 of each odd-numbered year and can last months at a time. A term for any representative is two years and all members of the House are up for reelection at this time. The next election date for representatives is November 6, 2018.
As of 2017, California has the most representatives with 53 and has a population of roughly 40 million. Other states with a large number of representatives are Texas with 36 representatives and a population of 28 million. Florida with a population of 20 million and New York with a population of 19 million have 27 representatives each.
Many states with much lower populations have only one representative. Wyoming with a population of 570,000, Vermont with 230,000, Alaska with 730,000, North Dakota with 750,000, South Dakota with 860,000, Delaware with 960,000 and Montana with just over one million all have just a single representative.
Congress, which includes both the Senate and the House of Representatives, is the legislative branch of the government and essentially in charge of making the nation’s laws.
Each of the 435 representatives is elected. Voting is a constitutional right for Americans. Knowing the history and mechanics of the House of Representatives, as well as which state has the most representatives versus the least, is useful for making an educated decision when voting for representatives.
– Courtney Wallace
Photo: Flickr
Facilitating Credit Access in Yemen Amid Conflict
This loan was a collaborative effort. Al Amal is a microfinance bank in Yemen and MSME was funded by KfW Development Bank, with the German Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development and the European Union providing the financial support for the loan.
The purpose of this loan was to strengthen the financial market through the development of micro-, small and medium enterprises and practicing principles of responsible finance for new entrepreneurs. Loans such as these allow for small enterprises to prosper by gaining credit access in Yemen.
However, in 2016, because of conflict in the nation, credit access in Yemen decreased on a large scale. Credit access for food cargoes and supplies for civilians in extreme poverty weakened. Lenders became disincentivized to offer lines of credit because of the civil war between the government, the Houthi militia and al Qaeda that is still ongoing.
International banks have declined to process lines of credit due to the instability in the country. This leaves traders to supply a full shipment of cargo without pay until arrival, an extreme risk to the trader.
Yemen’s central bank worsened the situation by stopping reasonable exchange rates for local traders purchasing rice and sugar for import. Yemen relies heavily on imports, and with these less than ideal circumstances, many individuals are left lacking basic necessities.
Government aid is working to combat the effects of poor credit access in Yemen. USAID funded over $100 million to supply roughly 400,000 people with food, water, shelter, healthcare and education.
The Yemeni government received four rehabilitated schools in Abyan and Aden because of USAID funding and a projected 13 more schools will be completed for use in southern Yemen.
Investing and providing credit access in Yemen seems risky, but through foreign aid and private investments to smaller enterprises, conflict may be driven down and local enterprises and trade may be allowed to grow in the country.
– Bronti DeRoche
Photo: Flickr
10 Fascinating Facts About the Women’s Suffrage Movement
Great strides have been made in the fight for equal rights, as evidenced by these 10 fascinating facts about the women’s suffrage movement. Women persevered and endured great hardships to ensure the granting of rights that many today take for granted. In the words of Margaret Mead, “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.”
– Anna Parker
Photo: Flickr
Five Important Development Projects in Azerbaijan
Over the past two decades, Azerbaijan has transitioned from a struggling young democracy to a major powerhouse in the South Caucasus region. This transition was precipitated largely by capitalizing on increased revenues from oil and natural gas. That being said, poverty is still an issue in Azerbaijan.
Fortunately, there are a number of development projects in Azerbaijan that are currently underway and promise to improve circumstances for many Azerbaijanis. Here is a look at five of them, some completed and some still underway.
Many development projects in Azerbaijan have focused on infrastructure. However, not all of this new infrastructure has been accessible to all Azerbaijanis. Highway Three and projects like it, which are being financed in part by the World Bank, aim to rectify this gap by creating a fledgling interstate system that better connects all parts of the country.
Highway Three is notable because, in addition to connecting two of Azerbaijan’s largest cities, the highway and its offshoots will also serve rural areas. The project is being done in conjunction with efforts to modernize Azerbaijan’s existing highways and bring them up to international standards.
Working together with the Azerbaijani government, USAID has just finished helping to replace an aging one-room clinic with a more spacious and better-equipped facility in the rural community of Kamalli. The clinic opened in October 2017, and is expected to serve over 2,000 people from Kamalli and other neighboring communities in the rural province of Saatli. Similar development projects in Azerbaijan in recent years have made a significant dent in morbidity and mortality rates.
Also in October, residents of Shahsevan-Tazakend, with the assistance of the Azerbaijani government and USAID, installed almost a kilometer of new pipes and two new water storage tanks. These new installations are meant to alleviate the repeated chronic water shortages that this area has been experiencing in recent years, in addition to eliminating the need to walk long distances to collect water each day for the 800 members of this community. This project is typical of the numerous other development projects in Azerbaijan that have helped to improve living conditions for over 150,000 people.
In February 2017, Azerbaijan and the UNDP launched a new initiative focused on preserving Azerbaijan’s agrobiodiversity as a part of the U.N.’s Sustainable Development Goals. The project will run for five years and will target the regions of Shaki, Goranboy and Goychay.
The Azerbaijani government spearheaded the design of the project, which will receive support from the U.N. and focuses on protecting native crops and encouraging their use in commercial farming. The project also aims to promote research and development on native crops and increase market access for small farmers who grow native crops.
Like many other development projects in Azerbaijan, this was designed with an eye on the future and hopes to promote resilience and productivity in agriculture in the face of climate change, as Azerbaijan also works to reduce its dependence on oil and natural gas as a revenue source.
The U.N. sponsored a contest for young scientists and entrepreneurs to put forth their best ideas for helping Azerbaijan accelerate its progress toward meeting the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals. The ideas may potentially be used to inspire future development projects in Azerbaijan.
This is the latest in a series of efforts to support research and development for similar concepts. The awards for the contest were presented in a ceremony on December 21, 2017. The winners included projects focusing on improving credit access and access to the legal system, as well as projects focused on alternative fuel sources.
In addition to major improvements in quality of life and major reductions in poverty, these development projects in Azerbaijan all promise to help the country transition to a greener economy and reduce its dependence on fossil fuels as a revenue source. In doing so, these projects will also improve the health outcomes for all Azerbaijani people and help more citizens make a living in sustainable ways. These projects make Azerbaijan an excellent example of how supporting sustainability efforts can also improve health and help to diversify a growing economy.
– Michaela Downey
Photo: Flickr
Sustainable Agriculture in the Democratic Republic of Congo
The development of agriculture and other sectors in the DRC have been hindered by the simple fact that the country has been healing from more than 15 years of war. This has unfortunately created serious infrastructure and systematic issues that have tested the nation’s business environment.
The agricultural sector contributes 18 percent of the DRC’s GDP and accounts for about 60 percent of labor, yet it still fails to establish food security and create enough revenue and sustainable jobs. Nearly half of Congolese people live below the poverty line, and the nation must import more than 70 percent of the food it eats.
Malnutrition still remains one of the leading causes of death among the population, with iron-deficiency being the second most common cause of disability. Infant mortality exists at 3.3 percent and life expectancy remains low, with more than half of the country’s inhabitants being under the age of 20.
Recently, the World Bank authorized additional credit of $75 million to Congo for the Agriculture Rehabilitation and Recovery Support Project. This funding is expected to increase agricultural production and improve crop promotion and animal products for many agricultural households.
The Congolese government backs this project with the hope that it will lower rural poverty by 2020 through establishing and streamlining systems used for agricultural production, progressing nutrition and food security and mobilizing backing from both public and private sectors. The additional funds will also hopefully be able to increase activities that acknowledge issues such as nutrition-sensitive activities, climate-smart agriculture and job generation.
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations has also developed numerous projects to strengthen the capacity for food security and nutrition and to develop sustainable agriculture in the Democratic Republic of Congo, such as:
With so much fertile land at its disposal, this country has the potential to feed the whole of Africa. But in order for sustainable agriculture in the Democratic Republic of Congo to be achieved, farmers must have access to ample financial services and strong infrastructure.
– Zainab Adebayo
Photo: Flickr