Banana becomes Algeria's weapon in battling trade deficit

Sidi Fredj, Algeria (Reuters) - With declining energy revenues and increasing import costs, the Algerian government is turning to farmers like Mostafa Mazouzi to help reduce its trade deficit - so it loaned him a hectare of land on the condition that he grow bananas. (Tomatoes), a greenhouse that has already harvested a banana crop on new land near the Mediterranean coast. He says - without mentioning numbers - that the project is "very profitable", which also satisfies the government, which benefits from early local crops for a crop that cost $ 35 million to import. In the first quarter of 2019, Mzouzi says bananas make him more profitable than other crops because imported fruits are more expensive. He is planning to establish an association for banana producers and wants the government to expand its cultivation on the coast. He said from inside his banana plantation, west of Algiers, "Banana cultivation helps Algeria gain jobs and wealth ... We look forward to supporting ...