The ambition is bold. Yet it now stands at the heart of Gabon’s economic strategy.
As the country aims to sharply reduce its reliance on food imports and halt the massive influx of foreign broiler chickens by 2027, the battle is being fought far from markets and ports. It is unfolding in the experimental fields of the National Centre for Scientific and Technological Research at Kougouleu.
The visit by Charles Edgar Mombo, Minister of Higher Education, Scientific Research and government spokesperson, to this strategic site is much more than a routine inspection. It signals a new direction where scientific research becomes a direct tool for economic transformation and a lever for national sovereignty.
In a nation where food imports still absorb a large share of external expenditure, the ability to locally produce the raw materials needed for livestock farming now appears as strategic as mining or energy exploitation.
Research at the heart of the national project
The goal set by the authorities is clear: build a poultry sector capable of meeting domestic demand while gradually reducing imports.
To achieve this ambition, animal feed is central. Maize and soya are the main components of feed used in industrial poultry farming. As long as these raw materials remain largely imported, the sector’s autonomy remains fragile.
At Kougouleu, CENAREST researchers are working precisely on this equation. Eleven varieties of maize are currently undergoing experimental programmes to identify the seeds best suited to Gabon’s soil and climate conditions.
The stakes go far beyond mere agricultural performance. The aim is to select varieties capable of delivering sufficient yields to sustainably supply a growing national poultry industry.
The scientific teams have also begun trials on eleven soya varieties introduced through international cooperation with research centres in Malawi. Additional experiments are being conducted in Nyanga province, particularly in Tchibanga, to assess performance across the country’s different ecosystems.
This approach reflects an important shift. Long seen as a field far removed from immediate economic concerns, research is now becoming an operational actor in development.
The ambition of an integrated sector
The government strategy is based on a simple logic: produce locally the essential inputs for livestock farming to reduce production costs and boost the competitiveness of Gabonese producers.
This vision aligns with a trend seen in several African countries grappling with soaring food bills. Dependence on imports remains one of the continent’s main economic vulnerabilities.
Yet Gabon has considerable assets: fertile land, abundant water resources and climatic conditions favourable to many crops.
For Charles Edgar Mombo, the results observed on the ground already demonstrate the country’s potential. The minister praised the commitment of researchers and highlighted the capacity of the national higher education system to concretely support the major directions set by President Brice Clotaire Oligui Nguema.
Beyond the agricultural aspect, the message is political. Science is no longer called upon to produce only knowledge. It must now contribute directly to national priorities.
A sovereignty still to be built
The advances recorded are encouraging. But they should not mask the challenges that remain.
The researchers themselves stress the need to expand experimental areas to improve the quality of trials and increase production volumes. The transition from scientific experimentation to industrial production is often the trickiest step.
The financial challenge is also significant. Agricultural modernisation requires massive investments, adapted infrastructure, financing mechanisms accessible to producers, and better organisation of value chains.
But for the first time in a long while, Gabon appears to be engaging in a coherent reflection linking research, agriculture, industry and economic sovereignty.
The ministerial visit to Kougouleu thus symbolises a paradigm shift. In the new vision promoted by the authorities, food independence will not be just the result of investments or administrative decisions. It will also pass through laboratories, research centres and scientific innovation.
By 2027, if the targets are met, Gabon could demonstrate that in Africa, food sovereignty is built as much with researchers as with farmers. A quiet transformation with potentially decisive implications for the country’s economic future.