By Tong Akok Anei Mawien
South Sudan has been on the front page worldwide due to persistent hunger every year, it is also at the bottom list of capabilities to produce her own food.
Over the decades, we watch hunger approaching and never take rebellion against it. How long would we depend on food import or buying food? How long would the Humanitarians keep committed to subsiding persistent hunger every year? How long would we be aided by foreign countries, and we just sit cross-legged? how long would we become independent not dependent?
Yes, we are politically and administratively independent, but still economically dependent, we need total Independence. It will be too late to do anything when WFP, FAO e.t.c, pack their things and dismantle their camps around and leave for Geneva or their Headquarters, not coming back again. It will be too late to do anything when China Stops her aid and focused on Taiwan, Hong Kong, or on her domestic Problems and likewise to some foreign Countries. let us wisely use this time when the world scrambles into our support to establish a strong foundation that is independence, that is the power we adore in some other Countries. Let us focus on our agriculture, empower our local farmers to produce their own food. Let us dump the thinking of buying food from Uganda, Kenya, or elsewhere, and think of buying it from Malakal, Yambio, Wau or Rumbek. Everything is here with us, the rich fertile land, labor and tools to make it happen.
The last time I had my window-shopping in Doshi Motors Ltd(SS) Business Center in City mall Konyo-konyo, I was amused by the Agricultural tools presented at Doshi Motors Ltd(SS) Show-room ready for work at affordable prices, from ox plough to mega T-multipurpose Machinery and many other tools, the tools that can be used for large scale and medium scale agricultural projects, I thought to myself if we use the fund allocated for direct foods items and other un-necessary materials to buy this tool and put them into use if we have an institution/Humanitarian organizations out there that can avail this tools to our local farmers either individually or in Associations, believe me, we will alleviate this persistent hunger of decades in just three years.
As I put it earlier in my last week’s article “Don’t Give Fish, Give a Hook” actually if indeed all the humanitarian actors, mainly agricultural Base Charities e.g, WPF, FAO, and Government seek to alleviate this persistent hunger in South Sudan, Don’t Provide Food, Provide tools, Empower Locals to produce their own food, on their own at all levels, in large scale, the medium scale, even at subsistence levels, then it would just be a matter of time and they could produce their own food or buy food within South Sudan.
The author can be reached via Tel: 0929300008/ 0988011119; Email: tongakok7170@gmail.com / tongakok47.@gmail.com