Ouagadougou: In a video from the Burkina Information Service that has gone viral on social networks, we see Minister Ismaël Sombié fulminating against the manager of an agricultural site for non-compliance with the deadline. The officer, who is not at his first warning, takes to heart the achievement of food self-sufficiency desired by the Head of State, Captain Ibrahim Traoré.

The events took place at the beginning of the week. The caption of the video element informs that ‘not satisfied with the progress of the development work on the Pics de Sindou shallows, the Minister of Agriculture, Animal and Fisheries Resources, Commander Ismaël Sombié gives injunctions , this Monday, February 19, 2024.’

We see Minister Sombié, surrounded by collaborators, in a rather unusual tone, speaking with one of the employees of an ‘offending’ company.

Visibly angry, the authority cannot admit that between its previous visit in mid-January and the present one, things have not changed in terms of progress of the work.

‘Didn
‘t I tell you that from June 1 we are going to exploit this area? », asks Commander Sombié.

Promising to return next week to the same site. The minister wished not to come and find such an environment during the next visit.

Better still, he asked his interlocutor to tell the boss of the company in charge of the work to now be present daily on the site. Order is given, immediately, to the Provincial Director of Police to follow the file by ensuring the daily physical presence of the boss of the company

. Some will certainly say that the minister perhaps went a little far in his injunctions. However, if we take into account the context in which the visit takes place, we easily understand the wrath of the head of the department in charge of agriculture.

Indeed, the tour is part of the visits to development sites intended for the 2023-2025 agro-sylvo-pastoral offensive.

The initiative aims for food self-sufficiency in Burkina Faso, thus avoiding imports in the country for certain food products.

Also called
‘agropastoral and fisheries offensive 2023-2025’, it was presented to private sector stakeholders by the Ministry of Agriculture and Animal and Fisheries Resources on October 5, 2023 in Ouagadougou.

On occasion, economic operators said they were ready to support the government in its implementation.

From then on, things should move quickly, even very quickly. And this is seen through the attitude of the head of the ministerial department.

As if to prove that he is a soldier, a good fighter and a sportsman, he increases his number of field trips. And this since his appointment at the end of last June.

The other reason which can make it easy to understand Commander Sombié’s anger is the behavior of certain public contract awardees.

Far be it from us to incriminate the company concerned by the viral video. Our comments are mainly aimed at companies which, sometimes awarded contracts after having gone through channels bordering on cheating, struggle to execute them.

They are taking longer than expected. Fac
ed with the reality on the ground, others had to throw in the towel along the way. Thus putting in difficulty an entire project or program and therefore the implementation of public development policies.

Let us recognize, however, that not all delays in contract execution are attributable solely to companies.

It happens that the State is at the bottom, by not disbursing the necessary sums within the planned deadlines. In such a situation, only serious companies with strong backbones can anticipate certain expenses while waiting for the State to comply.

Never mind, we understand that with regard to the arrangements relating to the achievement of food self-sufficiency in Burkina Faso, those who want to delay the process will cross the authority on their path.

Source: Burkina Information Agency