The Ministry of Industry organized a ceremony on Friday, October 3, 2025, marking the official handover of the standards for biofortified crops in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
The ceremony was chaired by the Secretary-General for Industry, representing the Minister of State and Supervising Minister, Aimé Boji Sangara, and was attended by agents and executives from the Industry and Agriculture sectors, members of the National Standardization Committee (CNN), as well as representatives from technical and financial partners.
In his speech, Jean Parfait Ntabala praised the multi-sectoral commitment and the support of partners in implementing the NCD standards. He stressed that this general mobilization constitutes an essential lever for the effectiveness of biofortification in the DRC. He also expressed gratitude to HarvestPlus, UG-PDSS, and the World Bank, whose technical and financial support made this major step possible.
On behalf of the UG-PDSS representative, Lazare Beya recalled that, « the problem of nutritional deficiency is a reality in the DRC, particularly among children under 5 years old, 7% of whom suffer from malnutrition. To combat this scourge, which has a negative impact on society, our multi-sectoral health project has collaborated with the international NGO HarvestPlus, which initially focused on biofortified crops rich in micronutrients to address this problem within the Congolese population. »
For his part, Toussaint Kendenga, representing HarvestPlus, the technical and financial partner of the CNN, presented the concrete results of crops enriched with micronutrients (zinc, iron, Vitamin A), notably maize, cassava, beans, cowpeas, and sweet potatoes. He ensured that, « in addition to these crops, HarvestPlus plans to extend biofortification to other species and ensure the distribution of enriched seeds to address micronutrient deficiencies in the DRC. »
« HarvestPlus uses biofortification, a conventional agricultural process focused on staple food crops with an increased content of essential vitamins and minerals, making them accessible to rural communities who often miss out on other supplementation or food enrichment interventions, » he continued.
The most significant moment of this event was the official handover of the normative documents to the participants. The Secretary-General for Agriculture, Ir Damas Mamba Mamba, was the first recipient, alongside the representatives of HarvestPlus and the UG-PDSS.
In his capacity as President of the National Standardization Council (CNN), the Secretary-General Jean Parfait Ntabala Murhandikere proceeded with this handover, illustrating the government’s commitment to widely disseminate these reference frameworks.
The representatives of the ministries concerned, as well as the partners, received these standards as essential working tools, intended to strengthen biofortification practices in the country and bridge the gap in terms of dissemination.
Journal Des Nations
