Burkina Faso

Burkina Faso

Together with partners, EIF has been instrumental in putting in place Burkina Faso's Trade Mainstreaming Roadmap. The plan aims to place trade integration into sector-based action plans, and supports implementation in the context of the country's Poverty Reduction Strategy.

A coordination platform for the public and private sector and donor community has been establishd for trade-related capacity building, policy development and Aid for Trade initiatives. Targeted support in key sectors such as sesame, shea almond, cashew and mango is being provided, with a strong emphasis on women's economic empowerment.

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Burkina Faso's cashews getting a makeover

Burkina Faso's cashews getting a makeover
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Diversifying sectors, increasing exports

Diversifying sectors, increasing exports

Trade integration and NIU sustainability:  Burkina Faso has established a set of effective trade coordination mechanisms, including a National Trade Negotiation Committee, a Trade Facilitation Committee and a National Committee on the Africa Continental Free Trade Area Agreement. Two sectoral dialogue frameworks have also been established within the Trade Ministry.

Through the Post-SSP project, 228 officials (22% of women and 30% of young) have been trained on thematic such as logistics, regulation of interprofessional organizations in key sectors, preparation of regulatory texts, program budget, intelligent transport systems.

Build sustainable value chains and diversify exports: 

  • Mango and cashew: The EIF's support to the commercialization of dried mangoes and processed cashew nuts has led to an increase in production volumes, improved technical capacities and access to new international markets. Throughout the project, a range of important equipment was provided to increase the productive capacity of mango drying plants. This included 3,025 crates with 60 stainless steel tables, 150 fire extinguishers, and 1,500 coats and scales. As well as this, 100 mango drying guides, 20 business plans, and the "YELEEN" management software were financed. By the end of the project (2018), over 4,000 new jobs had been created across the two sectors, as a result of the increase in the productive capacity and the establishment of new processing units in the mango sector. 

There has been an increase in exported mangoes from 5,000 tonnes before the project to approximately 10,000 tonnes in 2018. 

Producers have accessed 11 new international markets through the signing of 16 contracts, valued at USD 5.1 million. New export markets have included Canada, China, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, Switzerland, the United States of America and Vietnam.

  • Sesame: The EIF has supported the increase in the productive capacity and export potential of the sesame sector. The incomes of producers have been improved, in addition to greater access to finance. The sesame project led to the elaboration of an action plan for the national sesame producer’s association. It also led to an improvement of the quality of sesame and an increase in exports. Increased productivity in the sectors supported has been indirectly achieved through improved marketing and processing capacities that had a knock-on effect on production. There has been a 300,000-tonne increase in sesame production. 
  • Shea: The EIF supported the T2 PACFIK focusing on improving the productivity and competitivity of the shea value chain actors. The project supported capacity-building for 888 stakeholders, including 535 women (60%) and 302 young people (34%) on value chain practices, as well as 37 companies in acquiring and using packaging and labels for their products, in order to meet customer requirements. The project also provided 141 MSMEs with equipment, the development of the national development strategy for the shea industry (2022-2026). 11 storage warehouses were built and 3 were renovated for women's cooperatives, with training for the women in charge of their management. An e-commerce platform called "Faso produits" was developed for the promotion and sale of local products.

Thanks to the project, 79% of beneficiary organizations acknowledged having adopted new technologies. This has enabled beneficiary organizations to create temporary and permanent jobs, especially for women, reduce the drudgery of their work and guarantee product quality. The acquisition of a complete shea butter production line has enabled annual production capacity to be increased from 400 tonnes to over 1,000 tonnes.

Also, the regional project implemented by the Global Shea Alliance trained more than 6,000 women in Burkina Faso, including on best practices and soap production. Thanks to the project and its equipment and infrastructure, the Delwende cooperative saw its daily processing capacity of 3 bags of 80 kilograms of processed shea to 12 bags of 80 kilograms of processed shea per day.

Regional integration and trade facilitation: 

  • AfCFTA: The regional project implemented by UNECA supported 
  • Trade facilitation: The regional project implemented by UNCTAD focused on facilitating transit, transportation and exchanges in West Africa (Benin, Burkina Faso, Niger and Togo). The project fostered an enabling environment to simplify customs and border regulations between beneficiary countries along the Lome-Ouagadougou and Cotonou-Niamey corridor to improve their competitiveness. A study on the two corridors was developed to identify bottlenecks and recommendations for improvement and action to solve the identified challenges. The “Quadrilateral Declaration for the convergence of the legal framework for road transport, intermediation, transit and trade between Benin, Burkina Faso, Niger and Togo” was signed on May 25, 2023 in Niamey, Niger, by the Ministers of Commerce and the Ministers of Transport of four countries. This transit agreement has been developed to enable countries to simplify transit trade operations, cutting costs and time at the borders.

EIF is working to increase Burkina Faso's exports by strengthening institutional capacities to create and implement national trade strategies and policies.

Results:

  • Sector strategies including rural development, industry, energy, tourism and transport incorporated trade.
  • Funders in Burkina Faso are aligning Aid for Trade support with DTIS findings.
  • Sector policy for industry, trade and handicrafts and its action plan updated, with EIF support.

Burkina Faso is one of the top sesame producers in the world, but lack of organization and low quality crops have prevented the sector from reaching its full potential. In working to support sesame production, EIF emphasized the employment of female farmers, who represent 40% of the sector.

Results:

  • MiriyaGnouma, a groupd of 53 female sesame producers, increased its capacity to process sesame into oil fro 30 litres a day to 60. Average annual turnover was 18 million FCFA (approximately US$30,000), and following EIF support turnover has risen to 25 million FCFA, or an increase of 40%  
  • Export of sesame increased from 98,754 tonnes in 2012 to 171,461 tonnes in 2015. Export value increased from US$89.5 million in 2012 to US$169.8 million in 2015.
  • Trained 467 sesame producers in production techniques and post-harvest operations, safe use of pesticides and compliance with sanitary and phytosanitary standards.
  • Four 100-ton capacity warehouses were built in Léo, Dédougou, Fada and Koupela.

Shea almond covers 70% of Burkina Faso's surface area, and each year approximately 850 tons of shea nuts are produced and 250 tons of shea butter is processed. Shea almond provides substantial revenues for rural producers, including the 500,000 women whose livelihoods depend on the product. Building on an earlier project, EIF has started new work supporting export competitiveness and strenghtening the shea value chain.

Results:

  • In June 2015, the government adopted the Shea Almond Sector Development Strategy to serve as the reference document for all interventions at the national level in the shea almond industry. The strategy was developed with the support of EIF in collaboration with ITC.
  • 8 shea butter processors participated in the Foire internationale de Dakar (FIDAK) trade fair in December 2015.

Aligned with Government strategies and together with several umbrella organizations, EIF worked to strengthen the commercialization of the dried mango and processed cashew nut sectors.

Results:

  • Incomes of more than 6,679 individuals in the mango sector improved (including 5,344 women), and for the cashew sector 3,217 people.
  • 1,436 new jobs were created in the mango and cashew nut sectors as a result of the increase of production capacity and the setting up of new processing units for mangoes.
  • The Sahelian Cashew Forum (FOCAS) June 2018, organized with the support of the project, involved the participation of 10 West African countries in addition to Burkina Faso, with about 300 participants.

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