VZCZCXRO0759
RR RUEHROV
DE RUEHDJ #0545/01 1750810
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 230810Z JUN 08
FM AMEMBASSY DJIBOUTI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 9333
INFO RUCNIAD/IGAD COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 DJIBOUTI 000545 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR AF/E 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: EAGR ECON EAID SENV PGOV SOCI KPAO DJ
SUBJECT: DJIBOUTI STARTS PLANTING FOR "GREEN REVOLUTION" 
 
REF: DJIBOUTI 425 
 
¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY: Faced with rising global food prices, a near-total 
dependence on imported food, and resulting high levels of 
malnutrition and food insecurity (reftel), the GODJ has recently 
encouraged creative small-scale agricultural projects as part of 
Djibouti's overall food security strategy.  Less than one percent of 
Djibouti's land is arable.  Nevertheless, the success of several 
recent projects involving greenhouse cultivation, efficient 
irrigation, and drought-resistant varietals suggests that with the 
right techniques and technologies, Djibouti could indeed produce 
more of its own food.  While the GODJ has called on international 
donors, including the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), to 
help fund several of these projects, it has also significantly 
invested its own resources.  President Guelleh has personally 
championed the cause of agricultural development, and has succeeded 
in attracting several private investors into the sector.  Djibouti 
is never likely to be self-sufficient.  However, continued domestic, 
international, and especially private investment in the expansion of 
small-scale agricultural efforts could reduce import dependence, 
while at the same time augmenting rural incomes and feeding urban 
poor.  END SUMMARY. 
 
--------------------------------- 
DJIBOUTI'S AGRICULTURAL TRADITION: 
SHALLOW ROOTS AND SHORT SUPPLY 
--------------------------------- 
 
¶2. (U) With their long history of nomadic, pastoralist culture, 
Djiboutians do not have a strong agricultural tradition.  According 
to the GODJ Director of Agriculture, before independence, nobody 
thought Djibouti had any agricultural potential or put much effort 
into developing it.  After independence, some small-scale farmers 
began to cultivate pockets of land where water was available near 
the ground surface, and began to set up irrigation systems and to 
form small collectives.  However, the civil war in the 1990s all but 
destroyed these modest efforts. 
 
¶3. (U) Djibouti currently imports nearly all of its fresh produce 
from neighboring countries.  On May 21, Djibouti's 
fruit-and-vegetable importers' association suspended the regular 
weekly train delivery from Ethiopia, partly to protest worsening 
quality from Ethiopian suppliers, and partly to protest the GODJ's 
decision to leave in place a small fruit and vegetable tax while 
eliminating taxes on five basic food staples (rice, powdered milk, 
sugar, edible oil, and wheat flour).  Fruit and vegetable prices 
immediately increased, and availability and selection noticeably 
decreased.  The importers' association and the GODJ negotiated a 
quick end to the strike, and the GODJ agreed in principle to 
eliminate the fruit and vegetable tax.  However, the incident drew 
public attention to Djibouti's total dependence on imported produce. 
 In an interview about the strike in Djibouti's state-run newspaper, 
the Minister of Commerce suggested that Djibouti should aim to grow 
30% to 50% of its produce domestically.  Currently, local production 
covers less than 10% of fruit and vegetable consumption. 
 
------------------------------------------ 
PRESIDENT PUSHES FOR "GROWN IN DJIIBOUTI," 
PULLS IN PRIVATE INVESTMENT 
------------------------------------------ 
 
¶4. (SBU) The Director of Agriculture dates the beginning of the 
GODJ's interest in growing the agricultural sector to President 
Guelleh's election in 1999.  According to the Director, Guelleh made 
agriculture a top personal priority. During Guelleh's tenure, the 
GODJ has financed several demonstration projects, including a pilot 
fruit and vegetable greenhouse in the town of Arta.  To build on 
GODJ investment, Guelleh has actively sought support from bilateral 
and multilateral donors.  He has also prominently courted private 
investment in the sector, reportedly making personal appeals to 
several large investors. 
 
¶5. (U) At a recent conference on the FAO's programs in Djibouti, 
participants evoked the challenge of overcoming the misperception 
that some places--including Djibouti--are "impossible to cultivate." 
 To this end, general awareness campaigns have been an important 
component of the FAO's recent Emergency Action Programs in Djibouti. 
 Alongside the material support of tools and seeds, the FAO has also 
provided training, and has partnered with local civil society 
organizations to increase understanding about the benefits of 
agricultural production.  After spending over a million dollars on a 
2006-2008 program to plant small irrigated plots in rural districts, 
the FAO has found enough initial success to continue with an 
additional multi-million dollar program for 2008-2009. 
The FAO programs have focused mainly on growing fruits and 
vegetables for local consumption (40%) and forage for animals (60%) 
on small 1-3 hectare plots, with water supplied from rehabilitated 
cisterns and water retention basins.  While the FAO reports that 
60-70% of the targeted land areas are currently under cultivation, 
local FAO and Ministry of Agriculture representatives admit that 
 
DJIBOUTI 00000545  002 OF 003 
 
 
major challenges to the program remain, including providing 
appropriate and sufficient energy supplies to run water pumps and 
identifying appropriate heat- and drought-resistant varietals. 
Perhaps even more challenging is the need to provide constant 
support and training for nascent farmers, and the slow and difficult 
work of convincing a traditionally nomadic, pastoralist population 
that horticulture can contribute significantly to the diets of both 
people and animals. 
 
¶6. (U) To attract additional public and private investment, the GODJ 
acceded to the Arab Authority for Agricultural Investment and 
Development (AAAID) on May 22.  State-run media featured prominent 
coverage of this accession, and according to the Director of 
Agriculture, the AAAID has already agreed to finance several 
feasibility studies in the areas of greenhouse cultivation, 
slaughterhouse development, and fishing. 
 
--------------------- 
INMAA AGRICULTURE: 
RESULTS IN SIX MONTHS 
--------------------- 
 
¶7. (SBU) While several private investors have either already begun 
to invest in agricultural projects in Djibouti, or are actively 
looking to do so, the most visible private efforts to date are the 
agricultural projects of INMAA Investment, led by Dubai-based 
investor Ibrahim Saeed Lootah.  According to Lootah, President 
Guelleh personally asked him to invest in the agricultural sector. 
INMAA's agricultural projects include poultry houses, a greenhouse 
and open cultivation development on the outskirts of Djibouti City 
in the PK20 neighborhood, and a further planned farm near the 
northern city of Tadjourah. 
 
¶8. (U) After only six months in operation, INMAA's PK20 farm 
operations employ fifty people from the neighborhood, located in an 
impoverished outlying area of Djibouti City.  About twenty of these 
workers--mostly women who are the sole providers for their 
families--occupy living units on the development's premises, built 
by INMAA and equipped with solar energy panels.  In open field and 
greenhouse production, the farm currently produces and sells melons, 
tomatoes, carrots, and zucchini on the local market.  Fruit 
trees--including oranges, lemons, dates, pomegranates, and 
guavas--have been planted as well, and there is a small experimental 
garden for decorative plants. 
 
¶9. (U) The Agricultural Director for INMAA's PK20 project gives free 
daily hands-on lessons in gardening to all-comers from the 
neighborhood.  Twenty women have participated regularly in the 
lessons, and several have already been placed in gardening jobs. 
The Agricultural Director named water--currently derived from a 
well, but in short supply--as the major limiting factor for future 
expansion.  Changing local mentalities, she said, was also a 
challenge.  "I try to tell people not to let the goats eat the young 
fruit trees," she said, "since these are meant as an investment for 
your children!" 
 
¶10. (SBU) Another challenge for INMAA Agriculture is finding 
appropriate distribution mechanisms and price points. The 
Agricultural Director reported that the produce is sold both to 
small scale (mostly female) market vendors, as well as to larger 
stores and supermarkets.  While the small scale vendors tend to mark 
the price up very little, supermarket customers are reportedly 
doubling or even quadrupling the wholesale price, which reduces the 
cost advantages of "grown in Djibouti" produce for the average 
consumer.  Reportedly, some supermarkets even label the produce as 
coming from "Ethiopia" in order to justify the price. 
 
-------------------- 
A MILLION DATE PALMS 
-------------------- 
 
¶11. (SBU) At the June 3-5 FAO Food Security conference in Rome, 
President Guelleh announced that Djibouti intended to plant "one 
million date palms."  In a June 5 meeting, the head of the research 
unit responsible for Djibouti's current date palm development 
project told EconOff that this goal was a "long-term" one, and 
pointed out that the President's Rome announcement came without 
details on timing or financing.  Djibouti's interest in dates began 
with a 2005 Saudi Arabian donation of 20,000 in-vitro date palms, 
which were planted in small plots throughout Djibouti's regions. 
These plots will be gradually ceded to the population.  The Director 
of the Life Sciences Institute at Djibouti's Center for Research and 
Study (CERD) praised President Guelleh for his steadfast support for 
CERD in general and the date palm project in particular.  He said 
that the GODJ has invested 100 million DJF (USD 565,000) in date 
palm development and research projects.  According to the Director, 
the President's goal is for CERD to become a center of excellence 
for date palm research, eventually even selling plants and expertise 
to other countries.  CERD is currently working on experiments to 
develop the most drought resistant date palm varieties, to test for 
 
DJIBOUTI 00000545  003 OF 003 
 
 
hardiness in salty soils and water, to measure exactly the amount of 
water date palms need, and to identify complementary crops that 
could be grown in the shade of date palms. 
 
¶12. (SBU) While aiming for lofty goals, the Director also 
acknowledged the project's modest beginnings, and described his 
constant struggle for adequate resources.  Both physical resources 
(such as water and energy) and human resources are sometimes in 
short supply.  The Director said that while he currently employs six 
skilled technicians, he is continually fighting to increase 
professionalism, and to retain talented staff.  He reported that he 
had convinced the GODJ to offer scientists better financial and 
non-financial incentives (i.e. substantive research programs) so 
that they stay in-country. 
 
-------------------------- 
U.S. SOWS A FEW SEEDS, TOO 
-------------------------- 
 
¶13. (U) CERD's Life Sciences Director was eager to tap into U.S. 
expertise in pertinent areas, such as Californian date industry 
experience, or Southwestern research on agriculture in arid 
environments.  CERD is already slated to receive some Chinese 
assistance in expanding its facilities, and the Director emphasized 
that any level of U.S. involvement would also be welcome.  "Djibouti 
can be a crossroads to bring together the Middle East and the West 
over science," he said. 
 
¶14. (U) Several past and current Ambassador's Special Self Help Fund 
projects have aided small scale agricultural efforts in Djibouti. 
Past projects include assistance to market gardening collectives, 
and a grant to a bee-keeping venture that has succeeded, expanded, 
and is currently passing on its expertise to other interested 
groups. 
 
------------------------------ 
CALLING FOR A GREEN REVOLUTION 
------------------------------ 
 
¶15. (U) Djibouti's state-run newspaper has recently featured 
prominent coverage of growth in the agricultural sector, including 
an editorial calling for a Djiboutian "Green Revolution." While 
experts realize that there are constraints to Djibouti's natural 
agricultural potential, general optimism about Djibouti's 
agricultural future is high, with the GODJ Director of Agriculture 
predicting that Djibouti could be self-sufficient in fruits and 
vegetables in three years.  "It's a question of will and means," 
said the Director, "and while mindsets are slow to change, there is 
solid political support from the President." 
 
¶16. (SBU) COMMENT: Continued private investment and international 
support will be needed to keep Djibouti's agricultural sector 
growing.  While Djiboutians have always raised livestock, 
horticulture is a new idea for ordinary citizens.  Djibouti may 
never be self-sufficient, but increased support for agricultural 
projects could help to reduce import dependence, begin stemming 
Djibouti's rural-to-urban exodus, and decrease the cost of 
nutritious food for Djibouti's urban poor.  While a million date 
palms may take a while to bear fruit, Djibouti has already started 
planting.  END COMMENT. 
 
LIST