Agriculture and food in Equatorial Guinea

Agriculture in Equatorial Guinea

Equatorial Guinea, located on the west coast of Africa along the Atlantic Ocean between Cameroon and Gabon, is rich in oil resources. It lies between longitude 8o 25’ ~11o 20’ E and latitude 1o 0’ ~3o 48’ 30” N. This is the only Spanish speaking country in the African continent. The land area is 28,050 km2, of which 17,520 square kilometres was estimated to be a forested area in 2000 (World Bank, 2020). The country consists of a mainland area (Río Muni) and five islands (Bioko, Corisco, Great Elobey, Little Elobey, and Annobón). According to the 2020 census, the population of the country is 1.4 million people.

Equatorial Guinea has a typical tropical climate, which is hot and humid. The average annual temperature of is between 24° C and 26° C. The annual rainfall varies from 2100 to 3100 mm. Country features distinct wet and dry seasons. The wet season lasts from March to May and September to November in the mainland and from May to October in Bioko. According to figures from the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), only about 10% of the country’s 2,805,000 hectares are actually cultivated. Most soil parent materials are volcanic sedimentary rocks. Thus, the soil is rich in minerals.

Agriculture contributes to only about 2 percent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), reflecting the predominance of the petroleum industry. The country produces a very limited quantity of cereals (mainly maize), while the main food crops grown are cassava, sweet potatoes and plantains. Agriculture’s growth rate has been stable over the last years as well as its sectoral composition with around two-thirds of total production in the form of food crops. Cocoa is still the main cash crop that small- scale sharecroppers inherited from Spanish farm owners and foreign labourers who left the country during the mid-1970s.

As in other parts of Africa, bumper revenues from the oil and gas sector has limited interest in agriculture for many years. Cocoa and coffee production is lower today than 50 years ago and most people are still employed in subsistence farming. Cocoa cultivation is concentrated along the coast of Bioko and in the north of Rio Muni. Output has not increased in line with that of other major producers, such as Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire.

Coffee growing is another option in northern Rio Muni and also in northern Bioko. The main commercial crop on Annobón is oil palm. Corn, yams, manioc, bananas, rice and coconuts are all grown for local consumption, although basic foodstuffs are also imported from Cameroon. In Río Muni (on mainland Africa), where 80 percent of the population lives, food crops are the dominant economic activity, and cash crop cultivation is secondary. The main food crop is cassava, Sweet potatoes followed by bananas.

The country imports the bulk of its cereal requirements through commercial channels. With a population of about 1.4 million, total cereal imports in 2021 are forecast at a slightly above‑average level of 59 000 tonnes, which include 24 000 tonnes of rice and 35 000 tonnes of wheat. It is estimated that the country imports 70% of its food requirements.

Although Agriculture, forestry and fishing make only a marginal contribution to GDP , these are the main economic activities in Equatorial Guinea, involving about 60 percent of the economically active population. Many are subsistence farmers who clear the land by burning off the vegetation cover.. Sheep, goats, pigs, and cattle are also raised. Fishing contributes to the economy as well, and the timber industry remains significant for every day leaving.

With 644 km of coastline and 314.000 of exclusive economic zone, Equatorial Guinea has a rich variety of marine species due to the structure of the marine sector and to a well-developed river network. Marine Fish Captured include cods, hakes and haddocks; flounders, halibuts and soles; herrings, sardines and anchovies; jacks, mullets and sauries;

redfishes, basses and congers; tunas, bonitos and billfishes; and miscellaneous marine fishes. Equatorial Guinea is among the largest producers and exporters of wood in Africa. The country has a diverse rainforest covering a large area. 

Equatorial Guinea coved by dense tropical rainforest that is exploited by the lumbering industry. The forest contains about 140 species of wood species.it has the most commercialized:
Okoume (Aucoumea klainean), Limba(Terminalia superba)
sipo( entandrophragma utile), sapelli(entandrophragmaNcylindrium), as well as the light hardwood such as Ayous(Triplochinton scleroxylon)
Walnut
Mahogany 
Mangrove along the river banks and the coastal region

The leading export destination of Equatorial Guinea wood is Japan, Spain, Turkey, China and Portugal.