On July 03-05th 2019, the small scale famers held a fair trade in the province of Ngozi, northern country. The fair trade organizer was FOPABU in collaboration with Ministry of Environment, Agriculture and Livestock and ESAFF Burundi. Many organizations working on agriculture (Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), ADISCO, Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), IMENA, Confédération des Associations des Producteurs Agricoles pour le Développement (CAPAD), Milk Industry of Roceko, Food for the Hungry, World Vision Burundi, Alfa Aid Burundi among others) have been invited to participate in this event.
Also the government was represented by the Governor of Ngozi province, Chair of parliament agriculture committee and other officials from the National Centre of Food Control. Maize, beans, cassava, rice, potatoes, various transformed fruit juices, hens, eggs, and other agriculture products were showed. The fair trade event gathered 4,602 small scale farmers and among them 60% were women. The farmers demanded the following:
- That the government can double 10% of investment in agriculture sector and promote the action research approach;
- That the government can support in institutional capacity development;
- That the government can invest in agro-ecology and provision of agriculture inputs;
- That the government can increase the access to the markets at national, regional and international levels;
- That the government can increase the agri-business centres of incubation, processing centres as well as centres for animals breeding and multiplication;
- That the agriculture actors can support the operationalization of famers’ bank so that small scale farmers can have an access to the micro credits.
