ALLIANCE for Commodity Trade in Eastern and Southern Africa (ACTESA) chief executive officer Cris Muyunda has said 30 per cent of all cereals and 50 per cent of all fruits produced in the region go to waste due to lack of agro-processing facilities.

During the ACTESA stakeholders meeting, Dr Muyunda said there was need to create initiatives that would result in capacity building for small scale farmers to explore the markets being created.

He said ACTESA was developing commodity groups that would work towards improving the policy environment and competitiveness and increasing the integration of producers in commercial markets.

“In the developed world, over 90 per cent of all primary agricultural products are sold to agro processing facilities but in our region, only 30 per cent are sold to agro processing facilities, accordingly, some 30 per cent of all cereals produced and up to 50 per cent of all fruits produced are wasted,” Dr Muyunda said. “ACTESA will work to expand agro processing facilities throughout the COMESA region in order to capture the full value of our production and expand employment opportunities.”

And ACTESA advisory committee chairperson Philip Kiriro said agriculture must be used as a tool for industrialisation.

“We are experiencing difficult times ranging from food crisis to economic crisis and now climate change hence forcing many governments to move away from national development to start responding to these emergencies,” said Kiriro.

“And without proper mechanisms, we will not benefit from the expanded horizons of international markets so programmes like ACTESA should help farmers in overcoming the challenges of meeting the demands of these international markets.”