São Tomé and Príncipe must increase domestic production in order to reduce imports, said Francisco Ramos, the minister of agriculture, fisheries and rural development.

At the time, the minister was chairing the launch of the project “Support for capitalisation and enhancement of horticultural production for food and nutrition security,” which is supported by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Agency (FAO).

“São Tomé and Príncipe has favourable soil and climate conditions for the production of fruits, vegetables, tubers and livestock to replace massive imports of certain products of dubious quality,” he said, quoted by the STP-Press news agency.

The project was presented at the Agro-Livestock Technical Improvement Centre in Mezochi district, in the presence of the representative of the FAO, which is financing its implementation with an estimated budget of about US$234,000.

Data from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development shows that the São Tomé economy is not very diversified and that agriculture remains the predominant sector with a contribution of around 20% to Gross Domestic Product and involving almost 60% of the working population. (Macauhub)