Rédaction Africa Links 24 with Sarah Jane Lebrasse
Published on 2024-02-21 10:00:21
Agricultural producers have not even had time to recover from the recent weather disasters when the threat of Cyclone Eleanor looms once again like a sword of Damocles over their heads. Kreepalloo Sunghoon of the Small Planters Association sees only one solution for these increasingly inclement times.
“We need to change our habits. During the quiet months of May to October, when we have an abundance of vegetables at affordable prices, we can process and preserve the vegetables for difficult times,” he acknowledges. He believes that it is no longer worth the risk to plant during the months of January to March “as it involves a lot of risk of losing money.”
“If the cyclone does indeed head towards Mauritius, our sugarcane fields will be affected as the canes have grown quite tall. This will impact the cutting season, especially since forecasters are predicting heavy rains with this cyclone. This combination could lead to a catastrophic situation, even though I would hope it veers away from our country,” Kreepalloo Sunghoon continues.
On the vegetable front, he indicates that there are hardly any new crops at the moment.
“The few new crops will certainly be destroyed. Just when we thought that by the end of April we would be out of the woods in terms of vegetable shortages and high prices, this will likely not be the case,” he regrets.
Kreepalloo Sunghoon is well aware that natural disasters such as heavy rains, droughts, and cyclones will become more and more frequent.
“We need to change our habits. During the quiet months of May to October, when we have an abundance of vegetables at affordable prices, we can process and preserve the vegetables for difficult times. At the government level, in particular, at the Agricultural Marketing Board (AMB), we need to establish infrastructure capable of preserving and freezing these vegetables for six to eight months. This requires appropriate warehouses and cold rooms to bring them to market during the more difficult months of January to March. Indeed, the current vegetable prices are not accessible,” he emphasizes.
The spokesperson for the Small Planters Association also advocates for a change in production style.
“We can no longer continue to produce using a pickaxe, straw hat, boots… This no longer attracts anyone today. Planters who, five years ago, were 60-65 years old, preferred to retire because with the current weather conditions, their capital is too at risk. How then can they be replaced? How can we attract the youth? We need to sell this project to the younger generation. They need to be assured of at least Rs 30,000 at the end of the month to support their households. For this, we need to develop clusters on 300-400 acres of land in various regions with road infrastructure, lighting, etc., all accompanied by infrastructure where vegetables can be sorted, cleaned, and processed. If you ask a young person to take care of an acre of land, it will not attract them. However, if young entrepreneurs who can handle 7-8 acres of land mechanized according to the new production methods, then it could work. It is no longer worth the risk to plant in the months of January to March as there is a lot of risk of losing money,” he says.
“Today, agricultural land is underutilized. Two to three years ago, there were at least 25,000 acres of underutilized agricultural land. We had launched the idea of a Land Bank, where the owners – even of half an acre of land in an agricultural region – can rent them out and earn an income. It would require good management with a board of honest people. Otherwise, we will be in difficulty and face a food shortage. Even some countries do not want to export onions or potatoes to us because they too are facing climate change,” he proposes.
Read the original article(French) on Le Mauricien
