ECOWAS parliament advocates10% budget for agric

The Economic Community of West African State (ECOWAS) has urged member nations to invest at least 10 per cent of their annual budgets in the agricultural sector.

The Speaker of the ECOWAS Parliament, Moustapha Cisse Lo, while speaking during the planetary of the ECOWAS Parliament, acknowledged that agriculture is the backbone of every economy in Africa, but unfortunately, no West African Country had been able to meet up with the 2014 Malabo Deceleration where pledged members to invest at least 10 per cent of their budgets in the sector.

He lamented that the investment in the sector had not improved to achieve the expected six per cent growth rate, saying resources were not disbursed on time to the sector throughout the financial year.

The speaker, while interacting with the ECOWAS People’s Agriculture Budget Summit on the floor of the parliament, said the low investments in the sector had deprived it from contributing to the economic development and poverty reduction.

The speaker urged the parliamentarians to pressurise their government to invest 10 per cent of their budgets, saying Africa had vast land, water resources, manpower and donor agencies were willing to invest in the sector.

The Action Aid Country Director, Ene Obi, stressed the need to implement the Malabo declaration.