By Candace Freeman

THE Southern African Development Community (SADC) urged members to embark on vigorous water management programmes to ensure sustainable food security in the region.

The SADC Summit of Heads of State and Government on Agriculture and Food Security made the recommendation after meeting in Dar es Salaam in Tanzania over the weekend.

Various government officials within the region, including South Africa's Deputy President Jacob Zuma, attended the summit that was chaired by Tanzanian President Benjamin Mkapa under the theme, Enhancing Agriculture and Food Security for Poverty Reduction in the SADC Region.

President Mkapa, who also acts as the chairperson of SADC, highlighted the need for the region to continue fighting together for economic development. "This summit affords us an opportunity to build political will to put the question of agriculture and food security at the heart of national and regional priorities," he said.

He called on leaders to bring honour to SADC by ensuring that the region feeds itself on a sustainable basis. Member states were further encouraged to support programmes on water harvesting, inter-basin water transfers and the construction of water storage facilities in order to enhance agricultural development.

A statement released following the summit said as a major sector within the SADC, agriculture contributed 35 percent to the regional GDP and 13 percent of total export earnings. An estimated 70 percent of the population in the region depends on agriculture for food and employment. "However, given the huge land mass available in the SADC suitable for the production of food crops and livestock farming, agricultural productivity remains at very low levels," said the statement.

SADC Heads of State and Government also adopted the Dar es Salaam Declaration on Agriculture and Food Security in the region, reaffirming their commitment to ensuring accelerated agricultural development and sustainable food security.

SOURCE: - BuaNews