When I travel to Benguela by car, one of the images that catches my attention the most is the vast expanse of land before I reach Canjala. It is a place with a fence that costs millions of Kwanzas or dollars that can envy any mortal who came up with a simple 20 by 30 place to build a residence or start a business.
Curiosity has led me to question what’s inside countless times. There are thousands of hectares where it is not possible, with the naked eye, to see what will be there in terms of agriculture or agriculture, taking into account the specifics of the area itself.
It is possible that there is some space exploration. Like many in the country. However, reality has also shown us that despite having owners, they are still being exploited, at a time when agriculture has returned to the vocabulary of Angolans and that support is increasingly visible.
A few weeks ago, on duty, we visited LundaNorte, where we were able to visit and x-ray the city of Lôvua, one of the youngest in the country. One of the main ongoing projects is the responsibility of six families of Mennonites from Mexico, who have settled in the area since January of this year. The amount of land given to them for large-scale agricultural use is extensive.
It ends up being scary for some Angolans, especially those who feel proud and prefer to keep large areas even without giving them any advantage that would be more beneficial to citizens national.
In four months, the Mexicans, who settled in those areas of Lunda-Norte, are doing what was possible for the Angolans from that part of the country, despite a great fortune in money, accomplished for many years.
By now, at this point in which we are writing this piece, about 900 hectares (equivalent to 900 football pitches) have already been prepared and are beginning to be cultivated to produce large-scale production of corn, wheat, beans and soybeans.
By the beginning of next year, that is, 2025, they promise to do more than a thousand hectares. Contrary to what was said and could be distorted, we had the opportunity, fortunately, ‘in loco’ to see what is happening, and we could soon Lunda-Norte to be placed on the list of sectors that will be able to produce the required output to a large extent. grains for the diet of Angolans.
The influx of foreign citizens is always seen by many as a threat. Something that should not be true while they represent added value as Mexicans of the Lundas. In fact, many of the most developed countries in the world have relied on this migration force to prove themselves, especially in sectors such as agriculture, as is the case in Brazil, which we familiar
Better hectares given to those who really do, so that we do not live from imports, even in the hands of foreigners, than the thousands of plots of land that we have seen with no use by nationals, like that they were prizes.
