Located at the center of the African continent, the Democratic Republic of the Congo is a gigantic hive of biodiversity, which includes the second largest rainforest on the planet after the Amazon. A country rich in resources and with great potential in the area of agro-food, it takes part in Expo Milano 2015 within the Fruits and Legumes Cluster. On Tuesday, June 30 it celebrates its National Day at the Universal Exhibition, with a presentation by Eugénie Salebongo Basoy (Secretary General of the Ministry of Commerce, and Representative of the Minister of Commerce). After the official part of the program, festivities continue into the evening, with a concert by Congolese pop star, Fally Ipupa, at 20:00 on the stage of the Bio-Mediterraneum Cluster.
Africa in the global food challenge
Bruno Antonio Pasquino, General Commissioner of Expo Milano 2015, welcomed the Congolese delegation with a speech in which he highlighted the potential of the country and indeed the African Continent: "Many now say that in 2050 the African Continent will be the largest producer of food”, Pasquino told the audience. “In this respect, the Democratic Republic of the Congo has enormous potential, enjoying a huge territory and being rich in water, raw materials and biodiversity. Its contribution to the Exhibition’s theme is especially valuable with regard to the protection of biodiversity".
Feeding the planet, saving biodiversity
"It’s a great honor to be here on the occasion of the 55th anniversary of our independence”, said Eugénie Salebongo Basoy. “The Universal Exposition is a great opportunity for us to establish relations for economic cooperation". Speaking of the challenges facing his country, the representative of the Minister of Commerce added: "The Democratic Republic of the Congo has 80 million hectares of arable land, but currently uses only 10 percent: the rational use of this land could provide food security for the Congolese people as well as supporting exports. Our goal is to produce more food by encouraging food crops and creating industrial agro-food districts that transform the raw materials. But at the same time we are fighting the destruction of natural ecosystems and promoting population planning policies.”
