Food Security Strategic Plan.

The Food Security Strategic Plan is a national cross-sectoral strategic plan of Mauritius for the period 2013-2015. Its main objective is to provide strategic direction to stakeholders in the non-sugar agriculture.
Namely, the aim of the Strategic Plan is to create new opportunities for farmers, entrepreneurs and rural families to generate revenue in new ways while conserving the natural biodiversity and providing safe sufficient and nutritious food supply. It addresses the priority food crops, vegetables, and fruits and livestock production along their value chain. In addition to vocational training, training will offer certificate level courses to professionalise the sector. Fair trade initiatives will be encouraged through formation of agribusiness clusters – farmer, traders, processors and banks. Finally, the Strategic Plan aims to align development partners with the government strategies in intensification of development of sustainable production systems; support for the professional development of producers; promoting commodity chain and agri business development; and support for institutional development.
More specific objectives of the document also include enhancing the role of agriculture and in particular the non-sugarcane sector in the economy and society for improving standards of living of the population; increasing demand for better quality and safer food products; enhancing the level of self-sufficiency in a number of selected agricultural products; revitalising the livestock sector; developing a modern agricultural sector in tune with the sophistication taking place in other sectors of the Mauritian economy; empowering the agricultural community economically and technically especially the younger skilled generation by giving them opportunities and appropriate support to enable them to emerge as agricultural entrepreneurs; sharpening the country’s competitive edge on the export front with quality and diversified products taking into account the trade liberalisation and globalisation process and cross border initiatives; seizing all opportunities on the regional front to develop Mauritius into an agro-business hub; promoting sustainable intensive agricultural production; providing technical, marketing advisory services; promoting value addition of primary farm products; and promoting commodity chain and agribusiness development.
The document also provides its objectives in the area of disaster prevention. Specifically, it aims for integrated pest and disease management, including by maintaining a pest and disease surveillance; providing a decentralized rapid and disease diagnosis service; developing packages for key pests and diseases for strategic crops; promoting bio-pesticides and products for pest and disease control; and promoting biological control agents (predators and parasitoids) in pest management. In addition, the Strategic Plan also aims to adopt environment friendly production practices to mitigate the effects of climate change.
According to the document, the Government will act as a facilitator and provide necessary support to ensure that the set targets are achieved. It will also ensure that farmers are empowered to increase their competiveness to meet the challenges of globalization.