Project Reports

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Browsing Project Reports by Subject "Capacity building"

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    Access to Funding -A Mechanism For Supply Mobilization and Access to the Market
    (2019-02) IFDC
    This publication is the result of the project Communal Approach to the Agricultural Market in Benin (ACMA), financed by the Embassy of the Netherlands and implemented by a consortium of five institutions - International Fertilizer Development Center (IFDC - Lead Partner), the Royal Tropical Institute (KIT), CARE International, Sahel Capital Partners Advisory Ltd, and Benin Consulting Group International (BeCG). It was developed (from November 2013 to 31 December 2017) in three Nigerian border departments with high agricultural potential - Oueme, Plateau, and Zou through seven value chains (VC) initially: palm oil, maize, gari, chili, and fish, then peanuts and soya. The overall objective of the ACMA program is “the improvement of food security and the increase of agricultural incomes of the direct actors.”
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    Communal Approach to the Agricultural Market in Benin - Approche Communale pour le Marche Agricole au Benin
    (2019-02) IFDC
    This document discusses the challenges faced by Benin in achieving economic growth despite its agricultural development potential. It highlights the country's high poverty rates, food insecurity, and limited access to income-earning opportunities. The agricultural sector, which forms the backbone of Benin's economy, has the potential to benefit from the growing demand for agricultural products in neighboring Nigeria. However, economic actors in Benin face various challenges in accessing the Nigerian market, including regulatory barriers, lack of information, and inadequate infrastructure. The document introduces the Communal Approach to the Agricultural Market (ACMA) program as a mechanism to strengthen the role of local actors, such as economic actors, communal authorities, and socio-professional organizations, in cross-border trade between Benin and Nigeria. The program aims to address the institutional environment affecting cross-border trade through multi-stakeholder consultations and capacity-building initiatives. It facilitates coordination between agricultural actors, provides market knowledge, and improves access to funding. The ACMA program has achieved significant results, including forming Agribusiness Clusters (ABCs) that coordinate the development of competitive agricultural products for the Nigerian market. The program has facilitated business relationships and sales contracts between the ABCs and Nigerian buyers. Additionally, it has supported the construction of commercial infrastructure, such as storage facilities and marketplaces, to enhance the marketing of agricultural products. The program has also contributed to increased agricultural income for producers and processors. The document concludes with lessons learned from the ACMA program, emphasizing the importance of market orientation, value-added actions throughout the agricultural value chain, networking of actors, and credit warrant financing. These insights highlight the potential for improving agricultural trade and economic growth in Benin by addressing the challenges economic actors face in accessing regional markets.
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    Palm Oil Warrantage - An Inclusive Financing and Collective Marketing Tool for Improving Actors’ Incomes
    (2019-02) IFDC
    This material summarizes a study conducted by the ACMA program 2013 on the supply of agricultural products, specifically focusing on the production and marketing of palm oil in the Ouémé and Plateau departments of Benin. The study highlights the organizational structure of actors involved in the oil palm sector, including Village Groups of Oil Palm Producers (GVPPH), Communal Union of Oil Palm Producers (UCPPH), and Regional Union of Oil Palm Producers (URPPH), aimed at overcoming challenges related to fertilizer supply, improved plant material, and market competition. The study reveals that despite the commercial opportunities offered by Nigeria, the marketing of palm oil from Benin remains underutilized. The lack of a well-structured organization for product and by-product marketing and informal trade relations leads to fragmented offers and weak bargaining power for individual producers, processors, and traders. The study identifies limited access to credit as the main constraint for palm oil marketing, citing issues related to accessing finance through Decentralized Financial Systems (SFDs), lack of information, the reluctance of SFDs to finance agricultural activities, and a lack of tangible guarantees. To address these challenges, the ACMA program facilitated the implementation of warrantage, which provides easier access to working capital credits and improves production capacity for excluded actors. The program adopted a do-it-yourself approach, empowering direct actors to independently organize and conduct warrantage operations. The study highlights the positive impacts of warrantage on market participation, income improvement, and product quality. The warrantage implementation process involved multiple actors, including producers/processors, traders, ALIDé (a financial institution), former Communal Agricultural Development Sectors (ex-SCDA), and supporting NGOs. Local committees and communal warrantage committees were established to manage the warrantage operations. The study emphasizes the role of the ACMA program in providing prerequisites, raising awareness, facilitating interrelationships between actors and ALIDé, capacity building, and supporting sales market prospecting.