On June XNUMX in Kinshasa, Plantations et Huileries du Congo (PHC) and the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) signed a Memorandum of Understanding for the intensive production of rice, maize, soybean and cassava seeds that will be used for the implementation of the 145 territories development program (PDL-145T) a project within the national Agricultural Transformation initiative, driven by the President of the Democratic Republic of Congo, HE Félix-Antoine Tshisekedi Tshilombo.
The Memorandum of Understanding between the two institutions was signed on the premises of PHC in the presence of Mrs. Monique Gieskes, Managing Director of Plantations et Huileries du Congo and Doctor Sanginga Nteranya, Director General of IITA.
PHC is a leading player in agricultural production in the DRC, with expertise in the management of large-scale agricultural production activities and qualified technical staff for the production of quality seeds. Under the agreement with IITA, PHC will produce seeds of food crops in order to obtain local seed production capacity that can meet the needs of Congolese farmers.
Seed production activities will take place at the PHC sites of Yaligimba in Mongala Province, and Lokutu in Tshopo Province, which benefit from favorable climatic conditions for seed cultivation as defined in the agreement. .
In 2021, PHC launched a Community Development Program (CDP) in order to improve the standard of living of the populations surrounding its concessions through the promotion of agricultural production activities, in accordance with the Sustainable Development Goals. The CDP intervenes on several axes including the promotion of perennial crops, food crops, and special agriculture. The activities that PHC will undertake in partnership with IITA will further support the communities surrounding the company's sites, further realizing its vision of creating shared prosperity through agribusiness.