By Tata Mbunwe
Despite grappling with a separatist armed conflict for over seven years now, Cameroon’s South West has remained a major breadbasket in the country, producing tons of food and cash crops, some of which are exported.
This is thanks to the resilience of the region’s farmers, whom local authorities have hailed for remaining committed to the job, despite the crisis.
Dozens of farmers in the South West are now showcasing the region’s agricultural potentials at an ongoing Agro-Pastoral Show.
The event, lasting three days, began Thursday, December 19, at Bongo Square, Buea.
Bringing out their best harvest, farmers are displaying crops like Cassava, Palm oil, Rice, Cocoyam, Cocoa, Yam, Plantain, Tomato, Cabbage, Carrot, Onion, among others grown in the region.
Livestock and fishery farmers are also presenting the best they have got: fish, chicken, pigs and snails.
Many of them braved bad roads and lingering insecurity to attend the Agro-Pastoral show, a yearly event where farmers showcase their produce, exchange ideas, present their problems to the government, and receive awards.
This year’s event is themed, “Achieving Import Substitution Through the Promotion of Local Industries in Value Addition.”
Government officials at the event said farmers are at the center of local industrialization, which involves transforming crops into finished and semi-finished goods.
But to achieve this, farmers say the government must encourage mass production.
This is by setting up local industries, enhancing farm-to-market roads, substituting prices of inputs and providing a safe environment for agriculture.
Mr Esapa Patrick, the regional president of the national platform for farmers in Cameroon (PLANOPAC), thanked government’s attempt to set up local industries and improve farm-to-market roads.
Through the Agriculture and Value-chain Development Project, he said the government is setting up two palm oil mills, two rice factories, and two cocoa processing factories in the South West.
He also lauded the continuous effort to improve farm-to-market roads in the Region but said much more still needs to be done.
Other farmers acknowledged impending hurdles to farming in the region.
From the ongoing Anglophone armed conflict that has displaced thousands of farmers, climate change is also contributing to poor yields.
Farmers said the prices of inputs like fertilizers and insecticides have continued to rise, adding to a surge in transportation cost. This happened after the government reduced fuel subsidies earlier this year.
The Secretary General at the South West Governor’s office, Gilbert Acha Nkwenti, lauded farmers for their resilience to these challenges.
He said the government is committed to supporting farmers and improving the livelihoods of Cameroonians.
“As I have just pointed out above, the economy of the South West Region is largely dependent on agriculture,” Mr Acha Nkwenti said.
“And efforts to revamp this sector has seen a significant improvement in livelihoods of the entire population since almost all the Municipalities of the South West rely heavily on the agricultural sector for the empowerment of their population.”
The Secretary General at the Ministry of Agriculture, Mbong Grace Bambot, said she was overwhelmed by the farmers’ output.
She encouraged the youth to embrace farming because it does not disappoint.
“Agriculture does not lie. When you plant one seed, you are going to harvest more than a hundred seeds.
“So we’re encouraging our youth, encouraging everybody to go back to the farm because agriculture does not lie,” she said.
