In her first mission to South Kivu province as Prime Minister of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Head of Government, H.E. Mrs Judith Suminwa Tuluka, accompanied by a ministerial delegation, visited the Chief O. Obasanjo research campus in Kalambo on 26 June 2024 where the headquarters of the African Agricultural Leadership Institute (AALI) and the agricultural research station of the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) in the DRC are located. This delegation included several political figures, including the Minister of the Interior, Security and Customary Affairs, Mr Jacquemain Shabani, the Minister of the Budget, Mr Boji Sangara, the Minister of Media and Communication, Mr Patrick Muyaya, and the Governor of the province, Mr Jean-Jacques Purusi.
The visit is part of the DRC’s Agenda for Agricultural Transformation (ATA-RDC), which is the agricultural component of the national development programme, PDL-145 Territoires. This project was launched under the leadership of the Prime Minister (PM), Judith Suminwa, formerly the Minister of Planning of the DRC. The ATA-DRC project is a government-funded initiative by H.E. Félix Tshisekedi, President of the DRC, to accelerate agricultural transformation and guarantee the country’s food security. This is to be achieved by modernising agriculture and agro-industry, which can boost rural production and the rural economy, thereby reducing dependence on imported food. AALI and IITA are partners in this programme, providing technical support to the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security.
The Prime Minister and her team visited the various agricultural technology facilities developed and promoted by AALI and IITA in the DRC. These included: (i) the Semi-Autotrophic Hydroponic (SAH) laboratory, designed for the rapid multiplication of cassava cuttings to facilitate access to quality seeds for small-scale producers; (ii) the Aflasafe production plant, a product effective against aflatoxins, toxic fungi present in crops such as maize and groundnuts ; (iii) the greenhouse for the rapid rearing of Tilapia broodstock and (iv) the hatchery for the production of fry, run by young agri-preneurs from IITA and the AALI Brigade.
The purpose of the Prime Minister’s visit was to learn about the technological and social innovations that AALI and its partner IITA are promoting as part of this programme, and also to find out about the results achieved, one of which is the setting up of the Youth Brigade, as well as the challenges to be met in order to continue the programme.
At the end of her visit and her discussions with the youth agripreneurs and the Youth Brigade, the Prime Minister expressed her admiration for the technologies promoted by these two organisations, and for the crucial role they play in promoting modern agricultural practices, as well as the active involvement of young people and women in the agricultural sector. She also praised President Félix Tshisekedi’s political commitment to transforming the country’s agricultural sector, and praised the leadership of Dr Sanginga Nteranya, President of AALI, for his decisive strategic role.
It was an interesting and important visit, which enabled us to understand how the leadership of President Félix Antoine Tshisekedi is making it possible to accomplish the mission of creating more jobs for young people and women. Congratulations to the whole team led by Prof. Sanginga, especially the competent young women I was able to meet during this visit.
The words of H.E. Mrs Judith Suminwa Tuluka, PM, recorded in the AALI guest book.
This visit highlights the political will of the Congolese government to develop agriculture in the DRC. It also underlines the importance of collaboration between the private and public sectors in the process of sustainable agricultural transformation in the country, as advocated by AALI. Indeed, such a synergy based on inclusive leadership is crucial and essential to guaranteeing a prosperous future for Congolese agriculture and better positioning it on the international stage.
