Change, produce or perish
Raghav Ramful
By Raghav Ramful
Published on 30th May, 2008
Mauritius does not produce its own staple foods. This fact has not bothered us until the major rice and flour producers like China, India, Australia and Pakistan among other countries, decided to drastically cut down on their exports of these commodities or simply disrupt the process to ensure their own food security.
This sudden stand adopted by these countries, though probably not really an overnight move, has taken many other countries by surprise for the simple reason that they were not prepared to cope with the new situation. And all the fingers tend to point towards a drastic climate change which is beyond our control. What next? Scientists and other experts have already predicted worst case scenarios of climate change on food reserves and the alarm bell now resounds on a global scale.
As a Small Island Developing State (SIDS), Mauritius is more vulnerable to external shocks compared to other countries. Our heavy dependence on food imports and the fact that these have to be shipped from long distances weighs heavily on our expenses. The sky-rocketing price of petrol on the global market does not help either. There is no short-term solution to this problem. It is too late to say that we should have thought about it earlier and grown our own rice and wheat. However, for the long term, there’s many a solution to tackle the situation and the success of these plans that have been unveiled so far depends on how swift we are to implement them.
We all know that it would not be viable and profitable to grow rice and wheat in Mauritius because vast areas of land will have to be freed for that purpose and this is not possible in practice. However, there is scope to do so in neighbouring countries like Madagascar and Mozambique. With the Food Security Policy presented by Agro Industry Minister, Arvin Boolell, we might save our skin from the food crisis awaiting us. The policy which lays emphasis on rice, potatoes and maize, for which special agricultural zones have already been identified by Madagascar might do the trick.
On the other hand, if Mauritian entrepreneurs explore possibilities to shift supply of maize and rice from Argentina and Asia while also adopting a prudent policy for the production of potato in Madagascar to attain self sufficiency for Mauritius, we stand better chances. However, as time is against us, if we are not swift enough to land in these two countries to initiate this plan, others countries will do so. Actions are presumably ongoing at the highest political level for strengthening cooperation in the agricultural sector between Mauritius and the two countries.
It is expected that a robust, bankable and implementable action plan for 2009/2013 would be formulated by the end of July 2008 which would enable Mauritian entrepreneurs to move easily into countries of the region.
Meanwhile, our annual food consumption estimates reach some 690 000 tonnes out of which more than 75% is imported. Mauritius depends a lot on its food imports and last year the cost went up to Rs 23,4 billion. It has to be underlined that some Rs 9,3 billion was spent on rice and flour imports.
On a comparative note, our import costs have almost trobled between 2001 and 2007, that is from Rs 8.4 billion to Rs 21 billion. However, the volume of our imports has remained almost the same at around 500,000 tonnes. The rise in costs has been marked in imports of canned vegetables as the consumption pattern of such products by Mauritians matches those of developed countries.
As a Small Island Developing State (SIDS), Mauritius is more vulnerable to external shocks compared to other countries. Our heavy dependence on food imports and the fact that these have to be shipped from long distances weighs heavily on our expenses. The sky-rocketing price of petrol on the global market does not help either. There is no short-term solution to this problem. It is too late to say that we should have thought about it earlier and grown our own rice and wheat. However, for the long term, there’s many a solution to tackle the situation and the success of these plans that have been unveiled so far depends on how swift we are to implement them.
We all know that it would not be viable and profitable to grow rice and wheat in Mauritius because vast areas of land will have to be freed for that purpose and this is not possible in practice. However, there is scope to do so in neighbouring countries like Madagascar and Mozambique. With the Food Security Policy presented by Agro Industry Minister, Arvin Boolell, we might save our skin from the food crisis awaiting us. The policy which lays emphasis on rice, potatoes and maize, for which special agricultural zones have already been identified by Madagascar might do the trick.
On the other hand, if Mauritian entrepreneurs explore possibilities to shift supply of maize and rice from Argentina and Asia while also adopting a prudent policy for the production of potato in Madagascar to attain self sufficiency for Mauritius, we stand better chances. However, as time is against us, if we are not swift enough to land in these two countries to initiate this plan, others countries will do so. Actions are presumably ongoing at the highest political level for strengthening cooperation in the agricultural sector between Mauritius and the two countries.
It is expected that a robust, bankable and implementable action plan for 2009/2013 would be formulated by the end of July 2008 which would enable Mauritian entrepreneurs to move easily into countries of the region.
Meanwhile, our annual food consumption estimates reach some 690 000 tonnes out of which more than 75% is imported. Mauritius depends a lot on its food imports and last year the cost went up to Rs 23,4 billion. It has to be underlined that some Rs 9,3 billion was spent on rice and flour imports.
On a comparative note, our import costs have almost trobled between 2001 and 2007, that is from Rs 8.4 billion to Rs 21 billion. However, the volume of our imports has remained almost the same at around 500,000 tonnes. The rise in costs has been marked in imports of canned vegetables as the consumption pattern of such products by Mauritians matches those of developed countries.
Food processing
The Joint Economic Council (JEC) suggests that Mauritius should in fact position itself as an important hub with respect to food security in the region. In the same vein, the JEC explains that this move might unleash business opportunities. According to the JEC, the setting up of a full-fledged food transformation and services platform regrouping food technology and applied research capabilities, industrial capacities, processing and packaging and marketing services, would work wonders.
‘The food security sector will attract primary production from Mauritius and the region and transform agricultural produce into a whole array of basic to sophisticated processed food, meant for both the local and export markets,’ underlines a JEC Memorandum on 2008/09 Budget.
As a matter of fact, the Board of Investment and the EDB of Madagascar have signed an agreement last year to facilitate investment by investors from both Mauritius and Madagascar. In that respect, the JEC proposes that a BOI/EDB Madagascar joint process be set up to fasttrack the approval of clearances for all projects related to food security between the two countries.
‘The food security sector will attract primary production from Mauritius and the region and transform agricultural produce into a whole array of basic to sophisticated processed food, meant for both the local and export markets,’ underlines a JEC Memorandum on 2008/09 Budget.
As a matter of fact, the Board of Investment and the EDB of Madagascar have signed an agreement last year to facilitate investment by investors from both Mauritius and Madagascar. In that respect, the JEC proposes that a BOI/EDB Madagascar joint process be set up to fasttrack the approval of clearances for all projects related to food security between the two countries.
Helping hand
Meanwhile, Mauritius and the United States have agreed to explore avenues of cooperation to attain food security through the Mauritius-US Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA). The TIFA Council Meeting is scheduled to take place in Mauritius in early 2009.
Secretary for Foreign Affairs, Anand Neewoor explained that one of the priority actions in our TIFA work plan is to forge linkages between the private sectors of the two countries. He is convinced that the public and private sectors should join hands to make the Mauritius-US TIFA work for increased trade and investment between the two countries.
According to him, the strategic location of Mauritius and its capacity to provide a wide range of services efficiently offer the required platform to link up with the African continent and explore possibilities for triangular cooperation among US, Mauritius and African partners. This could also be a gateway for US firms to penetrate the African market in view of the membership of Mauritius to the regional blocs of SADC and COMESA.
The 2nd TIFA Council Meeting, held on April 29 in Washington recognised that the rising prices of food compounded by soaring oil bills is a serious threat to world growth and stability, thus rendering small countries like Mauritius more vulnerable to external shocks.
Secretary for Foreign Affairs, Anand Neewoor explained that one of the priority actions in our TIFA work plan is to forge linkages between the private sectors of the two countries. He is convinced that the public and private sectors should join hands to make the Mauritius-US TIFA work for increased trade and investment between the two countries.
According to him, the strategic location of Mauritius and its capacity to provide a wide range of services efficiently offer the required platform to link up with the African continent and explore possibilities for triangular cooperation among US, Mauritius and African partners. This could also be a gateway for US firms to penetrate the African market in view of the membership of Mauritius to the regional blocs of SADC and COMESA.
The 2nd TIFA Council Meeting, held on April 29 in Washington recognised that the rising prices of food compounded by soaring oil bills is a serious threat to world growth and stability, thus rendering small countries like Mauritius more vulnerable to external shocks.