Somalia’s agricultural potential

With a view to taking this long-term approach to development and thanks to the generous support and funding of the European Union (EU), FAO is currently implementing the Outreach II project together with the Federal Government of Somalia. “On top of extreme weather events, Somalia's agriculture sector is hampered by low productivity, heavy post-harvest losses, poor product quality and high vulnerability to climate change. Yet despite all these challenges – including also widespread insecurity – agriculture in Somalia has enormous untapped potential and could play a critical role in the country’s economic recovery and development,” says Etienne Peterschmitt, FAO acting Representative in Somalia.

The project started this year and will run until January 2022. The aim is to improve production and productivity for smallholder farmers, increasing their market access and competitiveness, and also enhancing governance mechanisms along the agricultural value chain. Hjordis Ogendo, Head of the EU’s Resilience, Infrastructure and Productive Services Sectors, said of the project:  “We believe that community-driven agriculture is the engine for rural development, which is key for development in Somalia. Improving the performance of agricultural value chains in particular would benefit a large number of people”.

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