FORTY YEARS OF FREEDOM: PROGRESS ON THE FOOD AND AGRICULTURAL FRONTS

The 40th anniversary of our independence is a good occasion both to look back and forward. Looking back, there can be nothing but pride in the achievements of our farmers. Progress has been good in achieving self-sufficiency in statistical terms both with reference to major staples and industrial raw materials like cotton and sugarcane (Table 1). However, statistical food self-sufficiency does not imply the elimination of hunger, which now co-exists on a fairly large scale with food grain surpluses. This is why FAO has defined food security as “physical and economic access to food to all people at all times”…