Food Security in Mauritius Current situation September 2008 - PDF document

Food Security in Mauritius Current situation September 2008 B.Rajkomar 1 B.Rajkomar 2008 Snapshot A net food importer, Food requirement: 686 000T Imports: 77%, Local Production: 23%, representing 17% of import bill Since 2000, Food I.B has increased by 50% Import food bill (RS): 15492b of which 6312 b (Crop), 3561b (Livestock), 5619b (Rice and Flour) Heavy reliance on imports food and related raw materials 2 B.Rajkomar 2008 1

Population � 2 main islands � Mauritius and Rodrigues � 2003: 1186 363 � 2007: 1 223 091 � USD = 28. Mauritian rupees 3 B.Rajkomar 2008 Development Strategy � 1980:promotion of agriculture and food production � 1985: emphasis on industrialisation, exports � 1990: industry and tourism � 1995: tourism, and offshore banking/services � 2000: ICT, 2005:tourism and services � 2008: tourism… Region/EPA & food security 4 B.Rajkomar 2008 2

Foodcrops production, tonnes 2006 – 2007 ( Source: CSO Mauritius ) FOOD CROP 2006 2007 Potato 14,522 14,848 Maize 452 354 Onion 4,550 5,141 Ginger 1,016 1,299 Chillies 1,512 1,426 Tomato 14,671 10,156 Pulses - Beans and Peas 1,487 1,442 Cabbage 4,547 4,430 Brinjal 2,839 2,749 Creepers 30,129 24,260 Other vegetables 12,502 11,349 Banana 11,347 8,990 5 Total 106,902 94,822 B.Rajkomar 2008 Livestock Poultry & eggs Self sufficient 33000 t Pork Decline 750 t Goat & Sheep Decline Beef Decline 75 t Milk Decline, 2-3% ss 6 B.Rajkomar 2008 3

Food Import Bill Year Qty(‘000t) Value(M Rs) 2000 585 7039 2002 713 11531 2004 703 11424 2005 723 13315 2006 743 15997 2007 739 22049 7 B.Rajkomar 2008 Staple food imports by Mauritius MAURITIUS IMPORTS COMMODITY 2003 2007 Quantity FOB Value* Quantity FOB Value* (tons) (Rs million) (tons) (Rs million) Ration rice 23,600 111.80 20,000 105.73 Basmati rice 56,197 575.00 59,541 1,027.00 Wheat 153,377 631.00 157,563 1,263.00 Maize(corn) 73,470 218.20 74,700 388.31 Pulses 72.02 82.95 9,170 180.28 8 B.Rajkomar 2008 4

Household level Average monthly household consumption expenditure = Rs 14,300 9 B.Rajkomar 2008 BREAKDOWN (%) OF HOUSEHOLD CONSUMPTION EXPENDITURE, 2006/07 Education 4% Other Food 21% 32% Household equip. 7% Health Clothing/footwear 3% 6% Transport Housing 16% 11% 10 B.Rajkomar 2008 5

BREAKDOWN OF FOOD EXPENDITURE, 2006/07 Rice 10% Other food 33% Dairy products 20% Meat/meat prep. Fish 11% 10% Vegetables/fruits 16% 11 B.Rajkomar 2008 National and food inflation rate(%) National FOOD inflation rate Year inflation Overall Imported Local rate 2003/2004 3.9 5.0 5.2 4.8 2004/2005 5.6 5.9 9.2 3.7 2005/2006 5.1 6.6 4.6 8.1 2006/2007 10.7 14.6 15.2 13.8 2007/2008 8.8 15.2 24.0 8.9 12 B.Rajkomar 2008 6

Government Strategy � Five-pronged strategy for food self-sufficiency – Mobilize land, human resources, technology and financial resources to produce as much food as is practical domestically. – Encourage surpluses in food production for exports – Partner with countries in the region, starting with Madagascar, Mozambique, Tanzania and other countries where opportunities arise to produce food-crops, livestock and marine products for domestic consumption as well as for the regional markets. 13 B.Rajkomar 2008 Government Strategy Mauritius will seek the support of regional blocs – and development partners and promote joint ventures, both public and private, and with countries including India and China. – Run a sensitization campaign to promote healthy eating. 14 B.Rajkomar 2008 7

Priorities � Top priority: increase self sufficiency in potatoes from the current level of 50 percent to full self sufficiency – Ensure required amount of potato seeds is available – Make maximum use of interline and rotational plantation – Small and medium planters regrouping into managerial units for derocking and irrigation 15 B.Rajkomar 2008 Priorities Full self-sufficiency in onions by 2015 � Other vegetables and fruits � Increase variety and quality – Hydroponics – Training – Marine products Milk and meat production 16 B.Rajkomar 2008 8

Creation of Food Security Fund � Finance and Audit Act amended � To implement provisions in budget 0/09 � One billion rupees (30 M USD) � Committee set up to manage fund � 12 sub committees set up to review subsectors and make proposals � Implementation plan awaited 17 B.Rajkomar 2008 Technical Committee � ������������� � ����������������� � ����������������������� � ����������������������������������������������� � ������������������������� � ���� � ��� � ��! � "���������������� ��!�� � #�$ � %������������ &���'����'�������� � ������� 18 B.Rajkomar 2008 9

Acknowledgements � The help of Mr Toolsee Gunesh is gratefully acknowledged. � CSO31 August 2008 � THANK YOU for your attention. 19 B.Rajkomar 2008 10