Lubango - A total of 145 agricultural projects of members of the Wapoma Livestock and Mining Cooperative of Angola (CWAM) in Huila are waiting to receive a total of 1.1 billion kwanzas in January from the Agricultural Development Support Fund (FADA).
This information was disclosed to ANGOP on Friday in Lubango by the president of CWAM-Angola, Piedade Pena, who added that 114 projects are located in the municipality of Matala and 31 in Caconda, using a gross area of 659.1 hectares for the production of cereals, tubers and vegetables.
According to Piedade Pena, a total of 1,150 tons of corn and 1,000 tons of beans are expected to be harvested in a sowing season that is waiting for funding to begin the second campaign, scheduled for next February.
According to the CWAM chairperson, each producer will employ between five and ten workers in this phase, generating a total of 1,500 direct jobs and 5,750 indirect jobs.
"Submission for the new projects have already been sent to the funding agency, FADA, which should disburse them by the end of the month," said Pena.
Piedade Pena said that this year, in addition to the ongoing registration of producers in the municipalities of Matala, Caconda and Lubango, the challenge is to start the activity in Chipindo, Gambos and Jamba.
He added that the FADA financing for the production area means that an entrepreneur with two hectares can access loans of up to eight million euros, and for those with five to 10 hectares, the amount can reach 15 million euros.
Pena pointed out that there is also a "very advanced" mechanization service in the fund, where producers who are unable to buy a tractor for individual use can do so through a cooperative.
"In addition to this mechanization service, they will be able to solve problems with the transportation of products, emphasizing that they are currently moving towards the development of the production chain, but still face logistical, preservation and processing problems.
He regretted that the funding for the current year does not cover these aspects, but only production, however, he said that this is a challenge for the donor and he also invites others to join the cause.
Pena said that the government is promoting agriculture, although 70 percent of it is still family-based, so there is a need to bring together different producers, which is why CWAM is working to support producers and facilitate connections with the authorities.
In Huíla, CWAM has registered more than 800 producers in the municipalities of Matala, Caconda and Lubango, who have gone through a cycle of training and monitoring to apply for credit. 93 projects were financed by FADA in the first phase.
The province has harvested more than 700 tons of different products in the first production with a financing of 850 million kwanzas for the 93 projects in the first phase.
CWAM-Angola is a collective organization with its own legal personality, administrative, financial and patrimonial autonomy, created in 2020 to support family farming projects in extremely vulnerable communities.
The cooperative aims to increase national production and generate positive economic and social impacts in the communities, transforming the regional and national agricultural landscape by promoting linkages between local producers. FADA funds this project. EM/MS/AMP
