With the recent signing of the Comprehensive Africa
Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) Compact by Lesotho, it has become the
34th countries on the continent to endorse the deal.
By signing the Compact, Lesotho has committed and
joined with a promise to achieve the goal of raising agricultural productivity
by six per cent and ensuring that 10 per cent of its budget allocated to
agriculture.
NaijaAgroNet
gathered that the signing ceremony took place in Maseru, penultimate Wednesday
with a pledge to increase investment in Lesotho’s agriculture through the principle
of CAADP by supporting stakeholders.
Speaking at the event, the Minister of Agriculture and
Food Security, Mr Litsoane Litsoane said the Lesotho CAADP Compact marks an
important milestone in the long journey towards the transformation of the
agriculture sector.
Lesotho, he said, has now become the sixth country
within the Southern African Development Community (SADC) to sign a Compact,
which is an agreement between Ministries of Agriculture and Finance, non-state
actors and the private sector on the priorities and strategy for a country’s
agricultural development.
CAADP, endorsed by African Heads of State through the
African Union in 2003, aims to stimulate the reforms necessary for agriculture
to have a positive impact on socio-economic growth and sustainable development.
NaijaAgroNet
learnt that according to Lesotho’s census report, 76 per cent of its households
depend on subsistence farming, with only nine per cent of the country’s
available land being arable.
The government’s recognition of the importance of
prioritising agriculture and food security, therefore, is seen by stakeholders
as outlined goal in Lesotho’s vision for the year 2020 and their National
Strategic Development Plan.
Equally gathered by NaijaAgroNet was that the CAADP
Compact signing event was attended by the Lesotho Prime Minister, Dr. Motsoahae
Thabane, later represented by the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of
Agriculture and Food Security, Mr Litsoane Listoane.
Other stakeholders present included
representatives from the African Union Commission, NEPAD Agency, SADC,
development partners, the private sector and the National Farmers Union.
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