By Makur Adut

Lakes State government, in collaboration with partners, has launched the Green and Resilience Agriculture and Climate Economy (GRACE) project.

The project is targeting 22,770 smallholders, 141,823 beneficiaries, 360 producer groups, and 23 cooperatives in four States, including Lakes State, Central Equatorial State, Western Equatoria State and Northern Bahr- El Ghazal State.

Implemented through the community based approach using producer groups and cooperatives in cooperation with local authorities at state, county, Payam and Boma levels engagement with private sector actors, the project is run with close coordination with the German aid, GIZ/ SNV consortium.

With a total budget of EUR 36, 439,205( EU -finacing 35, 200, 000 and co- financed EUR 1, 239, 205), the program is intended to promote green sustainable and Climate resilient economic development and to contribute to increase food and nutrition security, resilience to shocks, and job creation in south Sudan.

Speaking at the event on Thursday, Poth Majak Daljang, Lakes State Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Environment, said all nine Payams in Cueibet, and four Payams of Wulu County will benefit from the project.

“We want places to be allocated as demonstration farms for training farmers because we want to see a difference in this project.”

“It is not the size of land that matters, but proficiency or skills that you include in this cultivation that matter. This is what can help you out,” he said.

The minister said the people of Lakes State are committed and ready to welcome other projects.

“Currently, there is stability. So, we can run the resilience project even in Rumbek North,” he said.

 “Not all the counties are inaccessible or experiencing conflicts. There are peaceful areas, where we can implement a project. We want our partners to know that all the communities that were not included in the service during our dark days are open now. We can access them and they can benefit from the services that are there.”

However, Majak noted water shortages is the major challenge expected to experienced in the project.

“Agriculture cannot succeed without water. Growing of vegetables and other horticultural crops are purely dependent on water availability,” he said.

David Lugeron, the head of the World Food Programme (WFP), said Lakes State experiences adequate rainfall that can sustain agricultural production in the state.

“Lakes State has the greatest agricultural potential and rainfall that can sustain not only the region but also the country,” he said.

He said the GRACE project has come at the right time, calling for various stakeholders to come together and unpack the potential of the state.

“We are very excited. We are focusing on how we can go in-depth with the project to understand how it will work and what is needed from us to do,” he said.

“I am very happy that the European Union and the government of South Sudan have agreed to come up with this project. We hope it will change the face of the community,” said Hannington Sebaduka, FAO Head of Field Office Rumbek.