67TH ANNIVERSARY OF WORLD FOOD DAY HELD IN KISMAYO, JUBBALAND STATE AMID BITING DROUGHT

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A commemoration ceremony to mark the 67th anniversary of the World Food Day organized by the Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation of the Jubbaland State of Somalia was today held in Kismayo, Jubbaland state.

The event with the motto “Our efforts are our future” was attended by the Jubbaland state parliament, Cabinet members, civil society groups, Jubbaland farmers’ cooperatives and the arts community.

During the event, songs and dramas about agricultural production were performed as well as a showcase of vegetables and fruits produced by Jubbaland farmers who were present at the event.

Some of the officials who attended the event spoke highly on the importance of the Somali community to cultivate their fertile land and become food secure country given the country’s rich farming and food cultivation land.

The speakers said the country can be saved from the recurring humanitarian crisis if food production is given a topmost priority.

Meanwhile, Jubbaland Minister for Agriculture and Irrigation, Gelleh Mohamed Aden, who officiated the event, called on the Somali people especially in Jubbaland state to get rid of the donor dependency culture and work on their farms to achieve self-sufficiency on food.

This year’s World Food Day comes at a time of severe biting drought in parts of the Jubbaland state of Somalia.

World Food Day is an international day celebrated every year worldwide on 16th of October to commemorate the date of the founding of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization in 1945.

REPORT BY : Mohamoud Said Ahmed and Edited by Osman Hussein Ali