The World Bank has approved $150 million in International Development Association (IDA) additional financing to assist Benin in enhancing food security, productivity, and resilience in the country's northern regions.
The additional financing for the Benin Agricultural Competitiveness and Export Diversification Project aims to boost food security through increased production of rice and market garden produce. It also seeks to generate more inclusive economic opportunities in both upstream and downstream segments of these value chains for young people, women, and other vulnerable populations. The project will support the development of hydro-agricultural schemes, supply agricultural inputs such as fertilizers and seeds, improve production technologies, and provide agricultural advisory services targeting the involved value chains. Additionally, it will continue to support improving productivity and increasing exports of pineapple and cashew by-products.
With this funding, 3,000 hectares of irrigated land will be developed for rice production and market gardening. Furthermore, 34,000 hectares of cashew plantations will be rehabilitated, and 7,000 hectares of new cashew plantations will be created. For pineapple production specifically, a farm school will be established along with an industrial unit to produce vitroplants with an annual capacity of 13.5 million seedlings.
"Agriculture in Benin still employs two-thirds of the population. As a result, investment in the agricultural sector has a major impact on job creation and improving living conditions for the population. This additional financing will help create new economic opportunities and more inclusive livelihoods for populations in fragile and at-risk areas of the country,” said Nestor Coffi, World Bank Country Manager for Benin. “It is also an important pillar for food security and a key driver of fragility prevention mechanisms.”
Launched in June 2020, the Benin Agricultural Competitiveness and Export Diversification Project has rehabilitated around 83,000 hectares of old cashew plantations and established around 18,000 hectares of new plantations. It has created around 1,000 hectares of pineapple plantations and facilitated access to fertilizers for approximately 300,000 producers. The project has increased the volume of cashew nuts marketed by beneficiaries by 36% and pineapples by 20%, boosting cashew yields by 16.5% and pineapple yields by 10.6%. It also supported constructing temperature-controlled logistics facilities for exporting perishable agricultural products at Cotonou airport. Nearly 350,000 people have benefited directly from the project so far.