Department of Agriculture, Environment and Water Resources
Accelerate the implementation of ECOWAP / CAADP
Regional Programme to Support Agricultural Intensification and Pastoral West Africa (PRAIAP / AO)
December 2012
With technical support from:
/ Supporting rural development stakeholders in Westernand Central Africa
( Hub Rural)
With technical support from:
With technical support from:
/ Plateforme d’Appui au Développement Rural et à la Sécurité Alimentaireen Afrique de l’Ouest et du Centre (The Rural Hub)
Contents
ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS 4
1. Introduction 5
2. Background and justification 6
2.1. Recent performance of the regional agricultural sector 7
2.2. Agriculture: a sector with low levels of capitalization 8
2.3. Scope and limits of policies and strategies to improve farmers' access to inputs 10
2.4. Policies for price support to inputs 11
2.5. Overview of current programs 12
2.6. Issues and challenges of agricultural intensification in West Africa 13
3. Program strategy 14
3.1. Program scope 14
3.2. Purpose of the program 14
3.3. Overall objective 15
4. Justification for intervention 15
Axis 1: Facilitating access to inputs 15
Outcome 4.1. Appropriate mechanisms for financing inputs (fertilizer and seeds) are implemented. 16
Activity: 4.1.1. Support Member States to implement risk management instruments 16
Activity: 4.1.2. Harmonize the key interest rates of central banks and interest rates for commercial banks 16
Activity 4.1.3. Support the establishment of guarantee funds by Member States 17
Outcome 4.2. Input voucher programs for vulnerable farmers are implemented 17
Activity 4.2.1. Formulation, adoption of eligibility criteria for the voucher system 18
Activity 4.2.2. Establishment of funds and co-financing mechanisms for vouchers 18
Activity 4.2.3. Establishment of a capacity building fund for POs and local authorities to manage vouchers 19
Outcome 4.3. Network of input dealers (fertilizer, improved seeds, veterinary products, animal feed) is expanded and professionalized 19
Activity 4.3.1. Implementation of legislation 20
Activity 4.3.2. Support for the professionalization of agro-dealers 21
Activity 4.3.3. Support to finance investments and working capital 21
Axis 2: Promotion of innovative and sustainable production systems 22
Outcome 4.4. Research capacities on varieties adapted to climate change are reinforced 22
Activity 4.4.1. Creation / strengthening of specialized regional centers for strategic products 23
Activity 4.4.2. Implementation of competitive funds for interdisciplinary research 23
Activity 4.4.3. Establishment of funds to support the training and funding of degree programs (PhD and Master's) 23
Outcome 4.4.4. Integrated village water supply programs are implemented 24
Activity 4.4.5. Support for establishment of pastoral wells in transhumance corridors 25
Activity 4.4.6. Support the establishment of water points / multi-purpose boreholes 25
Activity 4.4.7. Support for the implementation of rainwater catchment systems for supplemental irrigation 26
Outcome 4.5. POs' intensification initiatives are promoted and supported 26
Activity 4.5.1. Support for technological innovation of POs 26
Activity 4.5.2. Support peer exchanges among farmers, inside and outside the region 27
5. Stakeholders and beneficiaries 27
6. Complementary measures 28
7. Risks and assumptions 29
7.1. Effects of climate change and variability 29
7.2. Mobilization of financial resources 29
7.3. Coordination between the different institutions at different scales 29
7.4. Political stability and security 29
8. Program implementation 29
8.1. Role of RAAF 30
8.2. Role of the Fund 30
9. Overall program cost 31
ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS
AfricaRice / Rice Center for AfricaAPESS / Actions prévues Contre la Réforme statutaire et salariale
ASF / African Swine Fever
CAADP / Comprehensive Africa Agricultural Development Programme
CARE / International NGO
CGIAR / Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research
CIF / Cost Insurance and Freight
CILSS / Permanent Inter-State Committee for Drought Control in the Sahel
CIRAD / Centre for Agricultural Research in Developing Countries
CNS / Caisse Nationale de Sécurité
COBEMAG / Benin Agricultural Equipment Cooperative
CORAF / West and Central African Council for Agricultural Research and Development
DARD / Department of Agriculture and Rural Development
EBID / ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development
ECOWADF / Regional Fund for Agriculture and Food
ECOWAP / ECOWAS Agriculture Policy
ECOWAS / Economic Community of West African States
FARM / Fondation pour la Ruralité dans le Monde
ICRISAT / International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics
IFDC / International Fertilizer Development Center
IITA / International Institute of Tropical Agriculture
LC / Limited Company
MDGs / Millennium Development Goals
MDTF / Multi-Donor Trust Fund Donors.
MFI / Microfinance Institution
NAIP / National Agricultural Investment Plans
NARS / National Agricultural Research System
NGOs / Non-Governmental Organization
PACCEM / Project to Support Marketing of Cereals in Mali
PO / Peasant Organization
PRAIAP/AO / Regional Programme to Support Agricultural and Pastoral Intensification in West Africa
RAAF / Regional Agency for Agriculture and Food
RAIP / Regional Agricultural Investment Plan
RAIP / Regional Agricultural Investment Programme
RBM / Billital Maroobé Network
REPAO / Network for Fishing Policies in West Africa
ROPPA / Network of Peasant Organizations and Producers in West Africa
USAID / United States Agency for International Development
VG / Village group
WAAP / West African Agricultural Productivity
WAAPP / West African Agricultural Productivity Program
WAEMU / West African Economic and Monetary Union
WARP / West African Regional Programme
1. Introduction
1. In January 2005, the Economic Community of West African States adopted an agricultural policy, ECOWAP / CAADP after an extended participatory and inclusive process that consulted the range of stakeholders in the region. The policy is both a framework designed to bring about profound transformation in the region’s agricultural sector, as well as an instrument of regional economic integration.
2. Indeed, the overall objective of the regional agricultural policy is to "contribute in a sustainable way to meeting the food needs of the population, to economic and social development, to the reduction of poverty in the Member States, and thus to reduce existing inequalities among territories, zones and nations."
3. The vision is one of “modern and sustainable agriculture based on effective and efficient family farms and the promotion of agro-businesses through the involvement of the private sector. Once productivity and competitiveness on the intra-community and international markets are achieved, the policy should be able to guarantee food security and secure decent incomes for agricultural workers."
4. The policy goes beyond the implementation of an innovative framework; ECOWAP is operationalized through two initiatives: National Agricultural Investment Plans (NAIP) and the Regional Agricultural Investment Programme (RAIP). The NAIP reflect national stakeholders’ priorities and focus on productive investments that integrate agriculture, livestock, fisheries and forestry. The NAIPs are quantitative estimates of investment volumes needed to garner at least a 6% growth rate in the agricultural sector, in hopes of halving poverty by 2015 (MDG).
5. The Regional Agricultural Investment Programme is a coordinated effort to federate national priorities. It brings together national and regional priorities under a shared vision: the priority programs under the NAIPs that incorporate regional dimensions and surpass national prerogatives, are supported by the Regional Investment Plan.
a. It presents a coordinated approach to investments and policy instruments (regulatory frameworks, incentives, etc.).
b. It federates approaches developed under the different RAIP sub-programmes around a set of shared key issues.
6. The policy instruments are formulated to manage the risks associated with agricultural activities and anticipate the consequences of agricultural policy decisions and strategies. They are designed to support productive investments and in particular create incentives and an enabling environment for agricultural development. Three types of policy instruments are used for the implementation of the RAIP: (i) instruments for intensification of agricultural production, (ii) instruments for market regulation and (iii) instruments to improve to food for vulnerable populations.
7. With regards to intensification, the Regional Agricultural Investment Programme foresees support for the modernization of family farms and sustainable intensification of production systems. This action aims to transform family farming systems by helping them transition from subsistence to market agriculture through sustainable access to inputs and equipment, new seed varieties, and land tenure.
8. To implement the action, the Plan provides for a number of mechanisms that focus on ensuring access to inputs and credit, and various forms of subsidies. These mechanisms are intended to provide a coherent regional response that is nevertheless adaptable to each country and their own constraints. They consist of a menu of actions that Member States can choose to implement with the support of regional co-financing from ECOWAS. They include initiatives that address the main bottlenecks in agricultural development: (i) a targeted fertilizer subsidies, (ii) targeted small equipment subsidies, (iii) a distribution network for inputs.
9. RAIP also provides for the implementation of a guarantee mechanism for input loans. The objective is to encourage banks to create credit lines directly for farmers or via distributors, by reducing (although not eliminating) the risk, thanks to a guarantee fund. The fund would focus on loans for food crops and cattle feed. This measure alone is obviously not sufficient to overcome credit constraints, and must be combined with other regional or national policies such as the development of warehouse receipts, and price and market stabilization measures. This component is not obligatory, and the existence of a guarantee fund is not a key constraint for some countries.
10. Finally, the Plan envisions the creation and dissemination of new seeds. This action aims to significantly increase seed production, which according to the FAO, grows only about 1.5% per year due to high costs to small farmers. The underlying rationale is that improved seed distribution is an instrument of sustainable intensification that determines the effectiveness of other factors of intensification. Thus, the Plan proposes a number of significant actions in this area: (i) coordination of basic seed production, (ii) harmonization of national input policies (taxation, subsidies, conditions for domestic distribution), (iii) capitalization and dissemination of good practices, (iv) capacity building of specialized research centers.
11. Accelerating the implementation of ECOWAP through the operationalization of the Regional Investment Plan hinges on a series of initiatives organized by the Direction of Agriculture and Rural Development under the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Water Resources. Firstly, the establishment of two technical institutions: the Regional Agency for Agriculture and Food (RAAF) and the Regional Fund for Agriculture and Food (ECOWADF), responsible for the technical implementation and financing of programs and projects supported by regional actors.
12. A number of task forces have been created to promote cooperation between regional actors on RAIP-related projects and the implementation conditions for planned economic policy instruments. These programs will be validated by the task force constituted for this purpose, before their adoption by ECOWAS decision-making bodies. They constitute the foundations of the first projects regional actors will submit to the Regional Agency for Agriculture and Food and the Regional Fund for Agriculture and Food.
2. Background and justification
13. This section reviews trends in the West African agricultural sector, focusing on two important aspects: (i) an analysis of actual performance over the last thirty years, and (ii) lessons learned from past implementation of incentives to improve the sector's productivity and significantly increase regional agricultural production.
2.1. Recent performance of the regional agricultural sector
14. The West African agricultural sector has made significant progress over the last thirty years. It has witnessed a considerable increase in production, all sub-sectors combined[1]. The volume of cash crops grew from 19 million tons in 1980 to 43 million in 2010, i.e., a 126% increase over 30 years. The volume of all food crops combined quadrupled, going from 59 million tons in 1980 to 235 million in 2010.
15. The three strategic crops adopted by ECOWAS grew considerably during the same period. According to FAO statistics, volume of rice production rose from 3.2 million tons in 1980 to 9 million tons in 2006 to 11 million in 2010. Maize grew even faster, from 2.1 million tons in 1980 to over 13 million in 2010. Cassava production nearly quadrupled, from 16.4 million in 1980 to 65.2 million in 2010.
16. Cassava production remained concentrated in a few countries, namely Nigeria (by far the largest producer in the world), Ghana, Côte d'Ivoire, Benin, Guinea and, to a lesser extent, Senegal. Maize and rice have been less concentrated, although certain areas tend to drive most of the production: north central Nigeria and Office du Niger for rice and cotton, and maize producing belt in the Sudanian zone. Rice is grown throughout the region. Twelve of the fifteen ECOWAS Member States have adopted a strategic development plan for rice, capitalizing on the emergency plans set up during the 2008 food crisis.
17. However, these results mask a critical problem facing West African agriculture: low productivity. Production yields remain very low and rose only slightly. Over the past thirty years, yields grew, on average, only 42%, representing only 30% of increased production volumes. Production increases were in fact achieved through a sharp increase in cultivated land (229% rise over the period 1980-2005)[2]. This extensive growth model is no longer viable and replicable (exploitation of marginal lands, soil degradation, land use conflicts, etc.). Climate change makes the situation even more complex.
18. This low productivity masks disparities in crops and production areas. In the case of cereals, increased production volumes are due to the doubling of cultivated areas, while yields only rose by 14%. In the case of roots and tubers, growth of production volumes can be explained by a nine fold increase in cultivated lands. Productivity is highly dependent on production conditions, including natural conditions, access to technology, credit and inputs and profitable market channels.
19. Specifically, productivity of major crops remains low. Cereal productivity ranges from 600 kg and 1000 kg/ha, with maize peaking at 1.5 ton, while the worldwide average is around 8 tons. Rice yields average 2.5 tons per hectare, compared to a world average yield of 4.5 tons. Cassava yields reach only 15 tons, compared to a worldwide average of 40 tons. This low productivity is coupled with significant post harvest losses due to lack of good quality storage infrastructure.