In his closing remarks, the Executive Secretary of CERDOTOLA, says the ALIPA program is the operational phase of the industrialisation of African traditional food. This was at the end of deliberations of the 3 day workshop on African Food Heritage-ALIPA.
Report of the deliberations was delivered by Prof. Esther Ngah the focal point of ALIPA. Among the recommendations were the creation of a network and the set up a technical team to push forward this idea. Certain research topics were censured from the 31 presentations that was made during the workshop to source for funding.
Should Africans be worried about the disappearance of African knowledge and food practises? This was the question around the round table, the last articulation before the closing of the workshop coordinated by the executive secretary Prof. Charles Binam Bikoi.
Taking the floor, Prof. Prince NKuma Ndoumbe III said Africa, despite being colonised, resisted in aspects like its music, food and plastic arts. He proposed the creation of African thematic restaurants and to go further in the distribution of African food stuff abroad that are in the hands of others like the Chinese, Lebanese and Pakistanis.
Chief Robinson Tanyi from the South West Region of Cameroon who doubles as the Deputy Secretary General of the Pan African Council of Traditional and Native Authorities based in Benin and the Secretary General of the South West Chief’s Conference, contributed on the aspect of using our leaves, roots and backs of trees to help build our organisms. He said he trades on bush mangoes that is exported to countries like Korea and the United States that is used for sliming agents.
This was followed by exchange from the participants and invited guests. Some salient points put forward include the fact that we should not shy away from new technology but embrace it to revalorize African food and culinary. Despite concerns that Africans should remain vigilant, conserve their biodiversity since this is where most of the dishes come from.
Furthermore, there should be an effort to always use geophysical identity on African products to help protect them. Representatives from some ministerial departments also contributed; we had Ministries of Agriculture and Rural Development, Livestock Fisheries and Animal Husbandry, Small and Medium Sized Enterprises and Handicrafts as well as the Ministry of Arts and Culture. The ceremony ended with Attestations awarded to participants, group photographs and diner with Cameroonian dishes like “Okra”, “Sanga”, “Koki” and roasted fish.