Vestafrikanske bønder afbryder deres arbejde på grund af ebola, og det påvirker høsten. Størstedelen af indbyggerne i den østlige del af Sierra Leone, der er hårdt påvirket af ebola-udbruddet, spiser mindre eller køber billigere mad af frygt for ikke at have nok.
KENEMA/FREETOWN/DAKAR, 20 October 2014 (IRIN) – West Africa’s Ebola outbreak, which has been disrupting agricultural and market activities, threatens to erode food security and negatively affect the livelihoods of millions of already vulnerable people in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone unless more is done to meet their immediate food and nutritional needs, say aid agencies.
They say they are still calculating the number of food insecure households, but already the results of initial rapid assessments are worrying.
The World Food Programme (WFP) found that more than 80 percent of people surveyed via mobile phone in the eastern part of Sierra Leone say they have been eating less expensive food since the outbreak began.
Three-quarters of respondents have begun to reduce the number of daily meals and portion sizes.
“I’m very concerned about having enough food every day,” said Sheku Conteh, a street trader in Sierra Leone’s capital, Freetown.
“The Ebola has caused a lot of strain right now. There’s no business and no jobs. and I’m having difficulty providing food for my family,” he said. “I have to starve myself much of each day just to save a bit from my sales to get food for my family.”
Farmers stopped going to their fields
A rapid assessment survey last month in Sierra Leone by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) found that 47 percent of farmers have had their work “considerably disrupted” by the Ebola outbreak.
“Here, we have the largest cocoa farms,” said Sidikie Kabba, a farmer from eastern Sierra Leone.
“Now it’s quarantined because of Ebola, so people aren’t travelling. Before, I was harvesting my produce – up to 50 bags – but now even 10 bags is difficult. So I’m losing money,” he said.
While Kabba stayed behind, many farmers stopped going to their fields during the most critical stage of the agricultural cycle – in July and August this year – when there was widespread misunderstanding of the disease.
In Sierra Leone’s Kailahun District in the east, at least 40 percent of farmers abandoned their land to move to non-affected areas according to the Minisrty of Agriculture.
Many seasonal migrant workers, who normally help with harvesting have been either too afraid to work alongside others in the fields or unable to travel due to quarantine restrictions.
“You alone, you are not able to do large work,” said Yankouba Vandi, who grows coffee and cocoa in Sierra Leone’s Kenema District.
“In the past, you can receive some manpower to help you to work, but for now, they will not allow that.”
Rice production down
In Liberia, rice production decreased by 10 percent in Lofa County this year because of fear among farmers, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). In Barkedu and Foya counties, rice production fell by 15 percent.
The results of a four-week joint assessment on the impact of Ebola on food security, livestock and agriculture in Guinea, which is now under way by the Ministry of Agriculture, FAO and WFP, will not be available until mid-November, but Gueckedou’s Prefectural Directorate for Agriculture says that the total land area that was cultivated this year has “considerably declined” compared to past years.
Closed markets and disruptions in trade, transportation and people’s movements, have also led to food shortages in many communities across Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone, particularly those in border areas.
“Right now we are having a hard time getting regular supplies from farmers and other suppliers,” said Adama Conteh, who sells rice and vegetables in Freetown’s Bombay Terrace.
”Most of the areas we normally buy from are very hard to go to now because of this Ebola. Many of the farmers are afraid to go to their farms and harvest, or even come to Freetown with their products,” she said.
Along the border of Guinea and Senegal, at least 16 weekly markets have been shut down, according to WFP. In Liberia, many of the weekly markets also remain officially closed.
Food prices up, incomes down
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