Potatoes regain importance in North Kivu, DRCCEFR A1
10 Oct 2025
Adapted from Laura, Global Voices • CC BY 3.0
Photo by Daniel Dan, Unsplash
- Potato farming is growing in the DRC.
- Government, NGOs and farmers work together.
- Potatoes are daily food in North Kivu.
- Varieties like Lubero and Rutshuru are common.
- The DRC produced 101,000 tons in 2018.
- Roads are bad and journeys are long.
- Diseases like mildew and wilt harm crops.
- New seeds give higher harvests for farmers.
- One farmer harvests about 500 kg.
- In rainy season trucks can take a month.
- Better seeds help more people eat.
- Improved seeds need more farmer training.
Difficult words
- potato — A round vegetable with brown skin.potatoes
- farm — Land used to grow crops.farmers, farming
- grow — To cause plants to develop.
- important — Having great value or significance.
- food — Any substance that people eat.
- method — A way to do something.methods
- produce — To make or create something.
Tip: hover, focus or tap highlighted words in the article to see quick definitions while you read or listen.
Discussion questions
- What types of food do you think are important in your country?
- How do farmers learn better methods?
- Why is it important to have different types of potatoes?
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