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Cocoa cultivation is one of the most widespread in the agricultural region of Beni, in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo. But unlike previous years, 2021 did not live up to the expectations of professionals in the sector. The goal of competing with Côte d’Ivoire in the global market will have to wait. Blame it on the security deterioration in the region.
In Mangina, bursts of laughter hide deep disappointments. Phillipe Paluku arrived in this city about six months ago. This farmer from the neighboring province of Ituri, fled the attacks he attributes to the ADF, the Allied Democratic Forces, an armed group that appeared in Uganda and has been established in the DRC for more than 25 years. Today, his eight hectares of cocoa are abandoned in his village.
« The bush has invaded my fields and they are rotting. There’s no way to get there. I’m scared, because those who went back there died “, he explains.
Even farmers from Mangina no longer have access to their fields. Jackson Paluku was until recently going back and forth between his home and his cocoa plantation located 15 km away. ” If you cultivate here in Mangina the land has become infertile. Even if you plant beans, groundnuts. It doesn’t look good. That’s why we try to go to the other side as the land is still fertile, it gives us much better production and it manages to save our families economically. It is the only agriculture that continues to help people in the region “says Jackson.
Insecurity brings cocoa production to a halt
From now on, insecurity prevents him from continuing his activity. Cocoa cultivation appeared in the Beni region, in eastern DRC, in 2003. Since then, exports have only increased to reach 46,000 tonnes in 2020.
« In 2020 we exported 46,000 tonnes, and the 46,000 tonnes harvested come from areas that were secure. We could even go beyond 46,000 tons if the whole region was secure », Details Cléophaste Paluku, the representative of the FEC, the Federation of Congolese companies in the area.
In 2020, two out of four territories – where cocoa is grown – were the target of alleged ADF attacks. A year later, all four territories were affected. The figures are therefore well below the expectations of professionals in the sector. In 2021, the region exported just under 50,000 tons, according to the FEC.