Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire
The African Development Bank Group (AfDB) has approved $102.79 million in funding for a pioneering initiative aimed at promoting sustainable agriculture across Guinea, Senegal, and Togo. This substantial investment will bolster the Multinational Program for Promoting Sustainable Agricultural Value Chains in Special Agro-Industrial Processing Zones (SAPZ), focusing on areas like climate change adaptation and renewable energy integration.
The funding will drive several key projects, including the Togo Agro-Industrial Transformation Project, Senegal’s Agropole-Sud, and the Boké and Kankan Special Agro-Industrial Transformation Zones Development Program in Guinea. These initiatives are set to enhance climate resilience and reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the respective regions.
One of the main components of the investment includes supporting small-scale irrigation systems, covering around 39,179 hectares of agricultural land. Additionally, the program will install renewable energy equipment, such as 2.59 megawatts (MW) of solar power and 10.24 MW of biogas energy, both of which will play a crucial role in powering irrigation systems and facilitating biogas production from livestock manure. These improvements are expected to significantly increase energy efficiency and reduce the carbon footprint.
“Climate change risk has escalated across the continent, and this financing from the Green Climate Fund (GCF) will address the urgent need to support rural communities facing climate-related challenges by leveraging proven technologies,” said Kazuhiro Numasawa, Division Manager of SAPZ Operations at the African Development Bank.
The initiative also places a strong emphasis on supporting women and youth in the agriculture and food sectors. It includes training programs for women to adopt innovative irrigation methods, as well as access to climate information services and low-carbon technologies for drying, processing, and packaging agricultural produce.
The program is expected to directly benefit over 1 million farmers, while indirectly impacting a total of 5.6 million people across the three countries. At least 50% of the beneficiaries are anticipated to be women, reflecting the project’s strong commitment to gender equality.
Each of the target countries stands to gain unique advantages from the initiative:
- In Guinea, the fresh produce sector is ripe with potential but faces challenges due to infrastructure limitations and restricted access to finance. By addressing these issues, the program will help enhance Guinea’s export capabilities for products like bananas, pineapples, and mangoes.
- Senegal, with its favourable climate for agriculture, continues to expand its fruit and vegetable exports. Initiatives like the urban micro gardens program in Dakar highlight the country’s efforts in local food production, even as it works to improve export capabilities.
- Togo is focusing on developing agricultural zones to boost production efficiency. Programs like the Agricultural Development Support Programme (PADAT) and the West Africa Agricultural Productivity Program (WAAPP-Togo) are helping to enhance productivity and provide essential training to farmers.
This investment by the AfDB is a critical step in addressing climate change, empowering rural communities, and fostering sustainable agricultural development across the region.
Source: Fresh Produce Middle East & Africa | Photo Credit: Fresh Produce
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The Common African Agro-Parks Programme (CAAPs) is aimed at boosting regional trade for agricultural commodities by increasing locally processing of key agricultural products. The CAAPs will help Africa take over the African Food Import Market of about USD50 billion per annum that is currently outsourced to the rest of the world. Read more at https://faraafrica.org/caaps/
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