'Grain agribusiness in West Africa: What market instruments and public policies are needed to enhance the fluidity of the regional grain market in the ECOWAS region?' That is the subject of the regional conference to be held in Ougadougou, Burkina Faso. Around 200 participants will share their experiences and good practices, and propose ways to promote cross-border grain value chains in West Africa.
The conference will bring together a wide range of the sector’s stakeholders: cereal producers (managers of producer organisations and individual producers), processors, merchants, wholesalers, retailers, customs officials, police officers and representatives of sanitary and phytosanitary services, representatives from various government departments (agriculture, finance), researchers, NGOs, and technical and financial partners. Stakeholders from related value chains (such as poultry and aquaculture) will also be involved in the event.
While most of the participants will come from West Africa, some 20 participants from outside West Africa have also been invited. These include those from neighbouring countries trading in grain with West Africa, and representatives of other regional communities such as the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS), the Southern African Development Community (SADC), the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), the East African Community (EAC) as well as the African Union, the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) and the Eastern Africa Grain Council (EAGC). Inter-regional exchanges will thus be facilitated, to share experiences and best practices.
