|
Learning English - Words in the News
21 November, 2008 - Published 14:42 GMT
Daewoo leases land in Madagascar
|
||||||||||||
The giant South Korean conglomerate, Daewoo, has leased a vast tract of land in Madagascar to help secure the country's access to food supplies. Daewoo Logistics has leased an area half the size of Belgium on which it will grow food crops. Martin Plaut reports: Daewoo says it will grow corn and palm oil on huge tracts of Madagascan farmland that the company has leased for 99 years. This ambitious scheme will cover 1.2 million hectares and is part of South Korea's plans to ensure its access to food supplies in the coming years.
The scheme is designed to provide more than half the country's imports of corn when it's fully operational in fifteen years' time. A number of Asian countries have been attempting to ensure their access to food supplies since unrest over food broke out earlier this year. And some African countries have been keen to receive overseas investment. Angola has offered farmland for development and Ethiopia's Prime Minister, Meles Zenawi, said he is eager to see foreign companies take a stake in his country's agriculture. Martin Plaut, BBC huge tracts leased ambitious its access to food supplies designed fully operational unrest broke out is eager to see take a stake |
Latest stories
09 December, 2009
Transgender teenager sues McDonald's
08 December, 2009
Copenhagen summit opens
07 December, 2009
US-Russia nuclear agreement close
02 December, 2009
Catching loneliness from the lonely
30 November, 2009
New guidelines for fighting HIV Other Stories
|
|||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||||