Food Security: Councils Challenged To Play Frontline Role

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Food Security: Councils Challenged To Play Frontline Role

16 août 2022 06:10

This year’s African Day of Decentralization to be celebrated on August 10 spotlights food security as a priority for development and highlights the crucial role of decentralized territorial communities.

Recent statistics of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development states that some 2.4 million residents were facing food insecurity challenges as at December 31, 2021. The information was disclosed by the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Gabriel Mbairobe on January 25, 2022 while chairing a workshop to validate the National Response Plan for Food and Nutritional Insecurity. Pundits say with the increasing staple food prices over the past months, the situation is even more preoccupying now especially in crisis hit regions (Far North, North West and South West) and the dropping humanitarian aid for thousands of refugees. It is against this backdrop that the local and Regional councils which are closest to the population are called upon to take up the challenge in the fight against food insecurity. The 11th edition of the African Day of Decentralization is therefore being used as the pretext to launch the fervent appeal to the decentralized territorial communities. Billed for August 10, the 11th edition of the African Decentralization Day will be celebrated on the theme “Making Food Security a Key Priority for Development.” While launching weeklong activities in prelude to the event proper which will be celebrated in Maroua, Far North Region, the Minister of Decentralization and Local Development, Georges Elanga Obam, challenged decentralization stakeholders to support policies that guarantee food security. To him, the choice of the theme for this year’s celebration of the African Day of Decentralization and Local Development is to recognise the role and experience of regional and local authorities in tackling food security. It is therefore an opport...