São Paulo – Ghana and Zimbabwe are the first African countries to become members of the More Food Africa program of the Ministry of Agrarian Development of Brazil (MDA). It was instructed established last Thursday (20) and is an extension of the program created in 2008 to finance and develop family farming projects in Brazil. These countries may obtain technical guidance from Brazilian specialists and may import equipment to develop family farming in their territory.
According to the head of the International Affairs and Commercial Promotion Advisory (AIPC) at the ministry, Francesco Pierri, the objective of the program is to establish technical cooperation between Brazil and African nations. “Brazilian cooperation is in support to plans for greater production in Africa, based on family farming. The countries that plan to expand their family farming may join [the program]”, he says.
Apart from offering cooperation, Brazil should export agricultural machinery to the signatories of the project. This export will be under special conditions. Those participating may buy machinery produced in Brazil, pay in 15 years, with three years of grace and interest rate of 2% a year. If the interest rate in the buyer’s country is lower, then it may be adopted.
For nations classified in the International Monetary Fund (IMF) initiative of highly indebted nation debt pardoning, like Ghana and the Central African Republic, the financing conditions are more flexible. The interest rate is still 2%, but the grace period rises to five years and the span for payment of machinery rises to 17 years.
Foreign Trade Board (Camex) funds approved for lines of credit for the program in the 2011-2012 period are US$ 640 million. Pierri says that all African nations may participate in the project, if the demand is for technical cooperation and import of machinery for family farming. The funds will come from the Bank of Brazil.
All producers who export machinery to these countries will have to practice the same price as they charge for products under the same specifications. This is due to the fact that, according to Pierri, the project proposal is for cooperation. Those buying Brazilian machinery will also be benefited by a program for parts maintenance. “The quality of the products will be guaranteed by the government of Brazil. For this reason, we are engaged with the producers,” said Pierri.
The companies that already participate in the ministry’s domestic More Food program are also included in the extension of the project to Africa. However, they must be in line with the project requirements. The government met with class organisations last Wednesday (19) so that they may offer products aligned with prices and technical specifications required by the project.
According to Pierri, cooperation between Brazil and the African nations in the development of family farming is part of an engagement with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) to help nations on the continent obtain food sovereignty by increasing their crops.
The idea of extending the More Food program, which has already invested over 4 billion reals (US$ 2,3 billion) in national projects since 2008, arose in 2010, during the “Brazil-Africa dialogue on Food Safety, Hunger Alleviation and Rural Development”, promoted in Brasília. Apart from Ghana and Zimbabwe, which have already agreed to participate in the project, Senegal, Namibia, Kenya, Cameroon, Mozambique and Tanzania should enter the More Food Africa in the near future. Cuba should also participate in the project.
*Translated by Mark Ament
