Far North under food insecurity threat

Fate seems to dwell on the Extreme-North of Cameroon, which has been prey to the abuses of the terrorist group Boko Haram, as the region has faced food crisis for some time.

According to the regional delegate of Agriculture and Rural Development in the Far North Region, Abakachi, it is a call for concern.

“The rainfall situation is catastrophic as compared to last year and the grain deficit this year 2015 is estimated at 200,000 tons, against insufficient food of 130,000 tonnes in 2014," revealed Mr Abakachi whose comments were published in the daily Mutation in its Tuesday, September 22, 2015 edition.

The situation is very disturbing as the most affected departments of the deadly incursions, Logone and Chari, Mayo-Sava and Mayo-Tsanaga are watered by rain. However while production basins are not cultivated, “displaced inhabitants have deserted their villages because of fears of attacks,” said Abakachi.

Three other departments, on the other hand, suffer from the harsh climate "mortgaging the next harvest,” reported the journal. For the regional delegate of the MINADER, “there are two reverse trends which aggravate the situation of the food crisis. Support and donations are no longer sufficient to fill the gap and the food ration is today limited to one meal a day.”

To support the populations, a Supervisory Committee managing the threats of food crisis in the region of the far North was set up. The first distribution of donations from the government to displaced populations was made in March 2015, and the second at the end of May.

Unfortunately, the poor state of the roads in this rainy season no longer permitted another distribution, "yet, this is the time people face a rough welding period," indicated Mutations.