Food in Eritrea Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Food in Eritrea - Essay Example The fight for freedom, which lasted for approximately 30 years, left the country in a state of destruction, especially in the agricultural sector. This is due to the fact that most of the lands which could be used for farming are littered with unexploded ordinances, which pose a security hazard to the farmers (Rena, 2007). In this context, any person trying to cultivate in these lands risks the possibility of triggering the explosion of landmines, which were buried during the war, but failed to explode. Tensions that continue to exist between Ethiopia and Eritrea have contributed to more installation of these landmines as a defensive mechanism at the expense of the farming communities (Zwi, 2005). The temporary security zone, which is considered to have been the most productive agricultural land measuring approximately 25km2 remains unutilized as a result of these landmines, which have kept away more than 50000 inhabitants, who were displaced by the war, regardless of the fact that n o more fighting takes place in this area (Zwi, 2005). With these developments, food production is deemed to remain low and as such, more people will continue to be affected by extreme hunger. This is also due to the fact that the government has continued to spend a lot of the already scarce resources to finance and facilitate the war with Ethiopia. For instance, it is estimated that more than 300 000 men and women are serving in the army instead of letting them engage in farming activities (Gebre, 2009).