More than half of the farm fields in Angola suffered losses during the 2023-2024 growing season, with cereals among the most affected crops, according to the Agriculture, Livestock, and Fisheries Profile released by the National Institute of Statistics (INE). Data from the 2023-2024 Continuous Agriculture, Livestock, and Fisheries Survey (ICAPP), cited by Lusa, indicate that 55.2% of crops were affected, while 44.8% reported no losses.
Cereals were the most affected group, with 67.1% of areas reporting losses, with sorghum standing out as the crop with the highest incidence of losses at 73.9%, followed by millet at 70.4%, and corn at 65.2%.
Among legumes and oilseeds, 54% of the areas recorded losses, with beans reaching 57.6%, while in vegetable crops, 52.7% of the areas suffered losses, with carrots being the most affected (82.1% losses), followed by tomatoes (64.2%) and onions (56.5%).
Roots and tubers show a more favorable situation, with 80.8% of the areas showing no losses, while permanent crops had 80.2% of the areas showing no losses, with fruit crops being the most stable.
Climatic factors are the main causes of reduced production in both growing seasons.
During the first season (January to March), floods or excessive rainfall affected 25% of farms, while drought or insufficient rainfall affected 16%. Pests and diseases accounted for 11% of the causes, and crop theft for 6.3%. In the second agricultural season (May to August), floods remained the leading cause, accounting for 22%, followed by drought at 14%. Pests and diseases accounted for 7%, and crop theft for 6.1%.
Angola has a total of 2.57 million farms, of which 2.56 million are family farms and only 4,988 are commercial enterprises. The overwhelming majority of family farms consist of individual producers with crops (95.14%).
The vast majority of family farms produce for their own consumption, and the National Institute of Statistics notes that family farmers “are not very inclined to sell their produce.”
Soil preparation is mostly manual throughout the country, with Huíla (south) standing out as the province with the largest mechanized area in the country, at 457,394 hectares, followed by Cunene (south) with 300,471 hectares.
Source: Lusa
