In Basse-Kotto, herders are regularly attacked by armed men. Some have lost their herds and others are robbed of large sums of money. Insecurity does not favor the supply of the city and beef is expensive on the markets.
From our correspondent, back from Alindao,
Cattle market located at PK3, east exit of the town of Alindao. Only five oxen roam. More than a thousand of them have been stolen by armed men in the past two months, says Lamine, a breeder. ” I had 1 000 oxen. They were gradually stolen by armed men. Some were stolen here in the farm and others in the forest while grazing. These bandits took my capital and now I only have five oxen. »
Most of the butchers in Alindao used to buy their beef in this cattle market… Today, in the central market of Alindao, the meat stalls are almost empty. The few traders who manage to stock up a little raise their prices.
Rising prices scaring away customers
For Constant Ndjimba, a butcher in the city: “ I now have to travel more than 50 km to find the breeders. It’s not their fault either, they fled the PK3 livestock market because of multiple cases of robbery. With the rise in fuel prices and the deterioration of the roads, I rent the truck for 250,000 CFA francs instead of 50,000 francs to travel 50 km. With these hassles, I am forced to increase the price per kilogram to 3 000 CFA francs instead of 1 000 CFA francs. »
A price hike that drives customers away. Mirabelle Yabanda, a housewife, finds with regret that she does not have enough money to buy meat for her whole family. “ I wanted to buy two kilos of meat at 2 000 CFA francs, but they increased everything. The kilo we bought at 1 000 CFA francs increased to 2 000 CFA francs. Everything is expensive in the market because of insecurity. Beef is increasingly rare on the market. I would have to buy something else, maybe vegetables. »
In this context, a certain number of breeders left the sector. Especially since a large number of leaders of armed groups have become cattle owners.