Angolan Food Deficit Picture Mixed

JOHANNESBURG - Feb 5/04 - IRIN -- Households in the maize-based agricultural areas of southern and central Angola are facing greater food insecurity than those in the northern and eastern cassava belt.

Cassava is a drought-resistant root crop and a major source of dietary energy for people in Africa, the Caribbean and Latin America.

It is expected that by April the number of food insecure people in Angola will rise to about 1.8 million, according to a vulnerability analysis report. However, it appears that rain-dependent maize farming areas may be more vulnerable than areas cultivating the more robust cassava plant.

The latest Angola Food Security Update by the Famine Early Warning Systems Network and World Food Programme notes that the "highly vulnerable population increased by 46 percent when compared to the situation in April 2003" and "households facing high levels of vulnerability to food insecurity are largely concentrated in the maize-based agricultural areas, where they face serious difficulties".

The disparity in needs was also reflected by the "fact that more people are returning to areas of origin with few possessions and face serious difficulties in re-establishing their livelihoods. These people are largely concentrated in the central and southern regions," the report said.

The food security situation of vulnerable returnees was varied, the report noted, and largely determined by their ability to reintegrate into the local economy and create new assets. However, the situation "is slightly better for those returnees who resettled in the cassava-based farming areas", as the vegetable provides a source of starch until the next crop.

Two timelines indicating vulnerability to food insecurity indicate that the maize-based farming areas would experience increased food insecurity from late November 2003 through to April 2004, the traditional lean period before the next harvest.

Those in the cassava-belt would experience a "less severe lean period" as the timeline for cassava-based areas shows a "moderate increase in food insecurity", with an increase in cassava prices from early December 2003 to mid-March 2004.

Both the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation and the International Fund for Agricultural Development have called for greater cassava production to boost the fight against hunger and poverty in developing countries.

"Cassava, also called Yuca and Manioc, can grow in places where cereals and other crops will not grow well. It can tolerate drought and grows in low-nutrient soils. The roots can be stored in the ground for several months. Cassava yields can reach as much as 40 metric tons (MT) per hectare, although national yields are considerably less," the agencies note.

Copyright (c) 2004 UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs

The subscriber version of the article is available by Clicking here