Bamenda: Agriculture minister launches PULCCA project to combat food insecurity.

It was in the presence of the Coordinator of PULCCA, Dr Ndzomo Abanda Gilbert, and regional authorities, led by the Governor of the North West Region, Adolphe Lele L’Afrique.

Officials of the implementing partners in the PULCCA project in the Region such as North West Development Authority, MIDENO; the North West Livestock Development Fund, CDINO and the World Food Programme, WFP, also lived the event. 

The project, which targets 265,490 vulnerable individuals and farmers, was created by a Presidential Decree in 2022. It was put in place as a result of several factors, amongst them general increase in the price of basic foodstuffs, the armed conflict in the North West and South West Regions, Boko Haram insurgency in the Far North Region and inter-ethnic conflicts.

Speaking while flagging off the project, Minister Mbairobe revealed that a survey, carried out in May 2024, revealed that 10% of the population of approximately three million people suffer from acute food insecurity. 

He further mentioned that of the three million persons affected, some 113,328 of them are likely to be in the emergency phase, if the situation is not addressed.

To tackle this worrying situation, the government of Cameroon, with the support of its financial partners, primarily the World Bank, adopted a key development objective to strengthen food and nutrition security and increase the resilience of targeted households. It is for this reason that PULCCA was put in place.

Minister Gabriel Mbairobe emphasised that the project will help mitigate the impact of food and nutrition insecurity in six of the country’s 10 Regions. They include the North West, South West, East, Adamawa, North and Far North Regions.

“We want to strengthen the productive capacity of farmers by giving them improved seedlings, fertilisers, and others. I invite all the farmers to make good use of these tools and inputs. I will like to make them know that the government will always support and help them to recover economically,” the minister said. 

Through implementing partners like the WFP, MIDENO, CDENO, SOWEDA and others, the farmers will benefit inputs like improved seedlings of cassava, potatoes, maize, plantains, chicks, fertilizer, feed, and basic tools like power tillers, and others.

Enter PULCCA National Director

Speaking at the ceremony, the National Coordinator of PULCCA, Dr Ndzomo Abanda Gilbert, underlined that the project has as long-term goals to improve the management and anticipation of food and nutrition security crisis and make stronger and more resilient agri-food systems.

He said the project, which already commenced in January 2023, is expected to run untill December 2025. 

With funding from the World Bank and the government of Cameroon, Dr Ndzomo said some 60.71 billion FCFA has been set aside for the project.

The event in Bamenda also featured the distribution of some of farm inputs to some selected farmers and farming groups.

According to Wanki Edwin, a beneficiary from Boyo Division, the project is very feasible because he has already been benefiting from it.

He told The Guardian Post that it is the third time he is receiving seedlings from the said project, which he said has been of immense help to him and his family.

“Through the farming of plantains, I sponsor my children in school. I came first during the last Agric Show, thanks to this project. I hope this will encourage other farmers to concentrate and also achieve big,” Wanki said.

This story was first published in The Guardian Post issue No:3211 of Tuesday August 27, 2024