International Development: World Bank to fund agriculture project in Republic of Congo

The World Bank is to fund a project to rehabilitate agriculture in rural areas in the Republic of Congo. The project is estimated to cost between $30 million and $40 million and will be launched in 2006.

Joseph Baah-Dwomoh, the World Bank's sector manager for environmental, rural and social development in Central Africa, said the project, "will focus essentially on the rehabilitation of rural access roads in order to try to improve the transport of produce to consumer centres, and to improve the marketing of the agricultural produce".

As part of the scheme, improved seed varieties will be introduced to farmers in an effort to modernise agriculture.