IFDC awarded USAID West Africa Fertilizer Program
18 September 2012 Africa continues to make strides in the adoption of crop production technologies.
The U.S. Agency for International Development’s West Africa Fertilizer Program (USAID WAFP) seeks to significantly increase food security and reduce poverty and hunger in West Africa. This five-year program being implemented by the International Fertilizer Development Center (IFDC) will have an impact across the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) region.
The program will increase the regional availability and use of appropriate and affordable fertilizers through: increased regional supply and distribution of fertilizers by the private sector; increased knowledge and use of agricultural technologies and methods; improved efficiency of regional market transactions; and an improved enabling environment for fertilizer policy and regulatory framework development. Currently, fertilizer consumption in West Africa is the lowest in the world and the fertilizer distribution chain is hampered by a wide array of constraints.
“Agriculture is the main engine of economic growth in West Africa and roughly 65% of the population depends on agriculture as their principal livelihood,” stated Dr. Amit Roy, president and chief executive officer of IFDC. “The agriculture sector contributes 30-40% of the region’s gross domestic product and over 15% of regional export earnings. This sector is best positioned to generate sustained and rapid poverty reduction in Africa.”
However, sector growth requires substantial increases in agricultural productivity, along with expanded and sustained integration of smallholder farmers into pre- and post-harvest markets. USAID WAFP will help move smallholder farmers from subsistence to commercial agriculture – farming as a business. This will require adequate supplies of affordable fertilizers and seeds for farmers, as well as access to credit, storage facilities and technical advice. Increasing fertilizer use is a critical element in raising agricultural production and productivity and in realizing the potential of agribusiness opportunities.
IFDC will work closely with a sub-grantee, the African Fertilizer and Agribusiness Partnership (AFAP), to ease supply-side constraints and ensure a reliable, affordable fertilizer supply in West Africa.
New fertilizer importers will receive business management and technical training for more accurate forecasting of market demands and better linkages to global fertilizer markets through multinational suppliers and processors. This will result in an improved fertilizer MIS to monitor supply and demand changes. The USAID West Africa Fertilizer Program will also work to facilitate the establishment of blending facilities for nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium fertilizers as well as warehouses for fertilizer storage. Additionally, the project will facilitate access to a USAID-funded Development Credit Authority (DCA) for specific private sector investments that increase fertilizer supplies.
Source: IFDC, Edited by FCI Staff
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