Global Arab Network | Lebanon growing self-sufficient in food supplies

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Lebanon growing self-sufficient in food supplies

Thursday, 14 October 2010 12:26

Historically, Lebanon has not been self sufficient in terms of its food supplies since not long after its surrendered its unofficial title as the bread basket of the Roman Empire. Nowadays, it relies on imports of some staple products and even produce. In recent years the situation has shifted toward a heavy reliance on overseas products to fill supermarket shelves. However, efforts are under way to strengthen the agriculture sector and improve life for those living on the land, reports Global Arab Network according to OBG.

According to the Ministry of Agriculture, the sector employs 20% to 30% of the country’s workforce and approximately 50% of rural families rely on agro-food production for their livelihood. However, it contributes only some 6% to GDP and even though agriculture is still central to life in many rural communities, up to 80% of Lebanon’s food and beverage needs have to be met through imports. This represents a massive drain on both consumer finances and those of the state, which helps subsidise prices for staples such as wheat and rice.

With such reliance on imports for many of its basic foodstuffs, the nation’s spending on food is susceptible to fluctuations in the global market. For example, in the case of wheat, domestic production is able to meet only 25% of demand and annual imports of some 400,000 tonnes are needed to make up the shortfall.

There are numerous problems Lebanon’s farmers have to contend with, and these have been exacerbated by a drought this year. While Lebanon is, by regional standards, affluent in water resources – annual rainfall normally exceeds 800m cu metres – this does not mean that it has water to spare. One of the problems faced by Lebanese farmers is the difficulty transporting water to their fields. With irrigation facilities limited and the cost of fuel for pumps excessive, in addition to an often-unreliable electricity supply, many farmers have to depend on nature to water their crops.

This dependency on the water cycle is resulting in serious problems, according to a report issued by the UN Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs in mid-September. While the amount of rain received by Lebanon has remained constant over the past 20 years, the number of days in which rain falls has dropped from around 90 a year to 70, the report said. This means that the intensity of Lebanon’s rain fall has risen. As a result, less of the water seeps into the soil and more flows over the ground, causing damaging levels of soil erosion, landslides, flash floods and, over time, desertification.

In addition to these challenges, rising global temperatures mean that Lebanon will have milder winters and less snow, which accounts for nearly one-third of water supplies, yet more bad news for farmers.

While the government cannot solve global warming on its own, it has moved to increase the amount of assistance to primary producers. Lebanon’s draft budget for 2011, submitted to the cabinet by Finance Minister Raya Haffar Hassan on September 8, includes a number of spending measures that will directly assist the agricultural sector. In particular, more funding is to be allocated to improving infrastructure, with the budgets of the Energy and Water Ministry as well as the of Public Works and Transport Ministry increased, the minister said.

“This budget will see spending on infrastructure increase by $70.2m compared to 2010 and all the money allocated for investment last year will hopefully be used this year,” she said. “Higher government spending on infrastructure will boost the economic growth in Lebanon.”

This spending is part of what Agriculture Minister Hussein Hajj Hassan believes is a greater commitment on the part of the government to supporting agricultural development. In late August, during a ceremony to mark the setting up of a programme of low cost loans for farmers, the minister said the government wanted to facilitate both an improvement in both the quality and overall quantity of output.

“The current government has adopted the new strategy offered by the Agriculture Ministry and shows seriousness in developing the sector by enhancing the skills of human resources and allocating more financial resources to improve its performance,” Hassan said.

However, despite the best efforts of the Ministry of Agriculture, which has developed a five-year strategy to overhaul the sector with higher state funding, training programmes, and advice on better crop management and improved practices, it may still be difficult to increase the contribution of farming to the economy or to shake its dependence on imports. However, if the programme succeeds, Lebanon may be able to strengthen its food security while also raising income levels through value-adding activities.

Global Arab Network

This article is published in partnership with Oxford Business Group

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Last Updated on Thursday, 14 October 2010 13:06

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