Africa-Press – Mozambique. Mozambican President Daniel Chapo on Wednesday handed over an irrigation scheme, covering 138 hectares, in Guija district, in the southern province of Gaza.
In an initial phase, the “7 April” irrigation scheme will benefit 300 farmers. “This will allow you to produce a great deal of food here in Gaza”, declared Chapo, stressing the importance of smallholder agriculture as an engine of economic growth.
He called for stepping up agricultural production, and reducing imports of food. “Producing food is also working for the future of Mozambique”, declared Chapo.
“The state spends a lot of money every year on importing rice”, he said. “When we import rice, we are giving our money to other countries. We must reach a level of production where we produce rice not only for ourselves, but also sell it to others”.
He also addressed the problem of stock theft, raised by local farmers in their meetings with him. “We shall continue to work to see how to solve this question”, he pledged.
The theft of livestock was a brake on rural development, said Chapo. “Breeding animals is not easy”, he added. “A cow takes many years to grow, and then someone appears and steals it. This must be condemned”.
He urged the community to organise itself in order to maintain the irrigation scheme, and to ensure payment for the electricity needed to keep it running.
He insisted that the livestock farmers should keep their animals in good health, ensuring that they are vaccinated, and use dip tanks to keep them free of ticks.
Also on Wednesday, at a rally in the town of Macia, marking the end of his visit to Gaza, Chapo promised that his government will continue to take measures to benefit the Mozambican people. “Our objective is to develop Mozambique”, he said. “To this end, we have to take a stand against violence. We must fight hate speech among Mozambican brothers, and bring instead a discourse of peace, reconciliation and love for our neighbours”.
He praised the orderly behaviour or those who had refused to take part in the unrest following the announcement in December of the general election results. “No country in the world develops on the basis of violent demonstrations, with the destruction of public and private property”, he said.
He called for “inclusive national dialogue” as “an essential instrument for the unity and social cohesion of the country”.
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