Boosting Agricultural Yield: Government Augments Efforts

C risis such as the CO­ VID-19 pandemic, Russia-Ukraine war, climate change condi­ tions, amongst others, have over the years disrupted Ca­ meroon’s agricultural supply chain. This has led to a hi­ therto inflation of agronomic inputs and products causing a visible 10 per cent surge on agrarian products’ prices. This, according to the African Development Bank Group, has left over 3.5 million peo­ ple, (nearly 13 per cent of the nation’s total population) with acute food insecurity. To curb this spiralling plague, the government of Cameroon, amongst others launched the Support Programme for the Strengthening of Cameroon's Agricultural Production (PAR­ PAC) in November 2022, and further signed numerous treaties to enhance Came­ roon’s production and trans­ formation scale. Through the Ministry of Agri­ culture and Rural Develop­ ment, authorities have prio­ ritized the distribution of im­ proved seeds, fertilizers, and modern farming equipment to smallholder farmers across the country. Under the Na­ tional Agricultural Investment Plan, subsidies on inputs have been expanded to make them more accessible and affor­ dable, particularly for maize, rice, plantain, and cassava growers. To address low me­ chanization, the government has partnered with private investors to establish agri­ cultural automation centres. These centres pro...