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                   Conflict in CAR Challenges Food Production

   by Emilie Iob

   The past several years of sectarian violence following a 2013 coup have
   left the Central African Republic's agricultural sector devastated.
   Agriculture once made up 54% of the GDP, but since the onset of the
   crisis food production has plummeted and prices have skyrocketed --
   compromising the sustainability of agriculture and foreshadowing a
   deeper food crisis.

   At a farming collective located 30 kilometers from the capital, Bangui,
   time has come to grow what is commonly called "crisis food", such as
   cassava. It takes a long time to grow and sells for a very cheap price,
   but it's hard to steal and is the last resort in a bid to survive.

   When the civil war broke out in the Central African Republic a couple
   of years ago, many farms were looted. So some farmers have begun
   working the land together.

   But they lack nearly everything, from machines to quality seeds,
   explained coordinator Felicite Ignabode.

   "If we don't get seeds in time and we can't plant, there will be a real
   food crisis. Not only for the farmer, but also for the people who
   depend on their production.  Besides, farmers have families. If they
   can't feed them anymore, there is a temptation for them to give up,
   take up a weapon and do bad things," said Ignabode.

   Local NGO Calebasse has hired technicians to help the farmers produce
   more efficiently.

   "Sometimes, their technique is a bit amateurish. They would grow
   several products on the same little plot. So we teach them to separate
   them and also to vary the kind of products they grow, like marrow, yam,
   banana. There is a market for these," said Boris Wabie, an agricultural
   technician.

   The collapse of local agricultural production and a surge of imported
   food has provoked a sharp increase in food prices, and agriculture is
   not the only sector affected. The price of meat has also increased,
   said Blandine, a customer at a Bangui market.

   "Prices have increased a lot. I normally buy for 800 or 1000 francs
   ($1.35 to $1.75), but now the quantity I get for that amount is smaller
   than before," said Blandine.

   Trader Emmanuel Bongo justifies the rising prices because of the
   challenges he now has to face to get meat to the stalls.

   Traditionally, Muslims dominated meat production and livestock
   transportation. With the war, many of them fled, leaving the traders to
   travel further and further to get livestock.

   "Now we have to get the livestock far away from Bangui, so we often
   encounter anti-balakas (Christian and animist militias) on the road,
   and they tax us. Armed Peul (an ethnic group) also often rob us. And,
   once we finally get back here, we don't have fridges to store the meat,
   and it goes bad very quickly," said Bongo.

   For the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization, social cohesion is the
   key to rebuilding the food industry on which different population
   groups depend.

   So, besides providing seeds and training to farmers, agronomist Pierre
   Vauthier said FAO also tries to bring the Peul population back into
   society.

   "The Central African livestock keepers, which are Peul, in majority,
   are at the moment hidden in the bush. So we want to help them to
   receive services, in particular for the cattle," said Vauthier.

   Prior to the war, 70 percent of Central Africans lived off of
   agriculture and livestock.
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   [1]http://www.voanews.com/content/conflict-in-car-challenges-food-produ
   ction/2641870.html

References

   1. http://www.voanews.com/content/conflict-in-car-challenges-food-production/2641870.html