Ouagadougou: The Minister in charge of Agriculture, Commander Ismaël Sombié, declared on Friday that as part of the agropastoral and fisheries offensive, the government will support vulnerable producers with 18,000 tons of improved seeds.The agropastoral and fishing offensive, launched last August by the government, aims to achieve food self-sufficiency by placing emphasis on the production of consumer crops which are in deficit in Burkina Faso.To achieve this objective, Minister Sombié indicated that the government will make 18,000 tonnes of improved seeds of various crops available to vulnerable producers.The minister who spoke on Friday August 31, 2024 in Ouagadougou at the launch of the 15th edition of the seed fair, showed that this support will be provided with the contribution of the research sector.'The mobilization of this quantity of seeds for the benefit of producers cannot be possible without the contribution of research,' he maintained.For this, Commander Ismaël Sombié congratulated tho se involved in Burkinabe research for the numerous actions taken with the aim of achieving food self-sufficiency.Aware of the crucial role of research in achieving food sovereignty, Mr. Sombié also promised to work alongside his higher education colleague to meet the needs of producers.With a total cost of 592 billion FCFA, the implementation of the Agropastoral and Fisheries Offensive covers the period 2023-2025.The Offensive, which aims to reduce the country's dependence on imports of consumer products, aims, among other things, to produce one million tons of rice and two million tons of corn to cover the consumption needs of Burkinabè.Source: Burkina Information Agency