Sierra Leone 'United Against Hunger'...
29 October 2010

This year's World Food Day theme, 'United against Hunger', was taken to heart in Freetown, Sierra Leone. Agencies working towards food security, including government ministries, NGOs, public and private sector organizations, UN agencies and research institutions, came together to share ideas at a networking event.

David Suale, Country Coordinator of RIU Sierra Leone, attended the gathering. He said:

"It was really valuable to get together to see how we can work together against hunger. We also explored the business aspects of agriculture by looking at the potential for adding value at each stage along the food chain. These two themes came together as we explored the potential for collaboration to empower local producers through access to new markets."

But accessing new markets presents real challenges to farmers. They need support to develop a range of skills and knowledge. This can include business plan development, packaging and marketing to make the most of the local available infrastructure. This is where the RIU approach is valuable - working with large groups of stakeholders to identify bottlenecks and then facilitating new approaches and new ways of working. This is particularly well evidenced through RIU Sierra Leone's recent work on poultry feed.

RIU Sierra Leone has shown how targeted interventions can open up innovations and improved technologies with positive long-term effects. For example, in solar fruit drying RIU has shown how simple processing can add value and, by increasing shelf-life, enhance food security. At the World Food Day event, farmer Mariatu Jusu demonstrated her pineapple and orange juices and dried and processed cassava which have enabled her to increase her income.

David continued:

"Our Minister of Agriculture noted that World Food Day does not fall at a great time for Sierra Leone's farmers. This is when most farmers are heavily involved in harvesting. He therefore proposed that in February 2011 a large countrywide exhibition will be organised at a time when more farmers would be available to display their products and institutions can show the contribution they are making. RIU Sierra Leone will exhibit our solar drying technology and our poultry feed products."