While the key to food security in West Africa is rice production, other agricultural products are equally vital to ensuring that the population is fed and the agricultural industry thrives. According to Olo Sibb, analyst for Central and West Africa at the World Food Program (WFP), "the future of the region depends first and foremost on producing food."

However, the food security situation across the continent is currently facing even greater challenges, especially in the wake of the New Crown epidemic and the Russia-Ukraine conflict. The Russia-Ukraine conflict has caused disruptions to food markets and fertilizer supplies, and has triggered widespread inflation.

The World Food Program warned in April of this year that "severe food insecurity in West Africa will reach its highest level in 10 years" as a result of the above. Many people in West Africa rely primarily on rice as a staple food, and while there has been an increase in the area under rice cultivation, particularly in countries such as Nigeria, Côte d'Ivoire and Senegal, this has not fully addressed the problem, and the region continues to require frequent imports of rice from Asia.

There have been calls to emphasize local grains, including millet. The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has declared 2023 as the International Year of "Sustainable" Food, calling for increased production of local fruits, vegetables, and legumes (including cowpeas) to meet urban demand for food. Others are betting on niche markets such as organic pineapples and fonio, an ancient grain found in West Africa.

So which types of commodities are most likely to combine profitability and food security? It's a question that deserves a deeper look.

Chicken: a key protein

Burkina Faso, Senegal, Côte d'Ivoire and Nigeria are all actively developing poultry farming, with Sédima in Senegal and Sipra in Côte d'Ivoire serving as success stories.

Consumption of chicken meat (and eggs) is booming and growing steadily in the African region, driven by population growth and urban expansion. This has led to the emergence of upstream industries such as poultry feed and hatcheries, and the development of downstream industries such as slaughtering, wholesale and retail, and catering, creating a virtuous circle.

However, the realization of such a virtuous cycle often depends on restricting the import of frozen chicken meat from South America (mainly Brazil and Argentina). This is because chicken from South America is two to four times cheaper and more competitive than local African products. Senegal has been a success story in the African region with its policy of banning chicken imports since 2005. As a result, more and more practitioners are calling for similar protectionist measures in the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to support the development of the local poultry farming industry.

Maize: a worthy success story

Maize is a cereal crop in vogue and an important food crop for sub-Saharan Africa. Market analyst Pierre Ricau of the French association Nitidæ, which is dedicated to studying the development of the African agri-food industry, notes that "in 2020-2021, sub-Saharan Africa produced 90 million tons of maize, while importing only 3 million tons."

According to the USDA, Nigeria is the second largest producer of maize on the continent, after South Africa (the two countries produced 12.7 million and 15.6 million tons of maize in 2022-2023, respectively). Meanwhile, Mali (3.7 million tons of maize in the same period), Burkina Faso (2.0 million tons) and Côte d'Ivoire (1.2 million tons) form a stable production base. Mali and Côte d'Ivoire doubled their maize harvests from 2014-2015.

Ricau mentioned that in Burkina Faso and Mali, maize grows for up to a year and is harvested only once a year, while Côte d'Ivoire and Ghana have two harvests. This subregional integrated cropping pattern allows for maximizing maize production.

As a key ingredient in the human diet, maize is widely consumed in the form of porridge, batter, shortbread, flour, etc., and is also an important feed for rearing animals (poultry and cattle).

Poultry farmers and millers at Sédima in Senegal and at Sipra/Ivograin and Foani Services in Côte d'Ivoire are hopeful that the growth of the livestock sector will lead to a boom in the maize market. The beverage industry, including Castel, Africa's second-largest beer and soft drink company, is also seeing growing demand for maize by-products (crude maize meal used to make beer and other alcoholic beverages).

Cassava: the road to industrial production

Cassava is emerging as an important tuber crop for the future and is of particular interest in West Africa. Nigeria is a major producer of cassava, with nearly 60 million tons produced in 2018, accounting for 21% of total global production. Researcher Ibrahim Hattie noted that Nigeria has set an example for other African countries by boosting consumption, increasing productivity and developing supply systems.

In addition to Nigeria, Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana, Sierra Leone and Liberia have also placed great emphasis on cassava as a crop. Cassava has a diverse range of transformations, and in addition to the symbolic flour of Côte d'Ivoire, gari and attiéké maize flour, other varieties are being popularized, especially cassava starch, which can be used in many food products.

At the same time, several companies have begun to apply cassava. Nestlé uses it in seasoning compounds and Heineken uses it in some of its beers. There are also flour and starch projects in the pipeline in Côte d'Ivoire. In addition, in the long term, the protein-rich tuber could be used as a biofuel.

Cassava's wide range of uses and versatility give it great potential in the African region, and countries are making progress in exploring and promoting its applications.

Palm oil: the potential for edible oils

Palm oil is one of the West African region's major imports, after wheat and rice. The climate of the West African region and the oil palms endemic to the Gulf of Guinea are ideally suited to the development of the palm oil industry, and Côte d'Ivoire is the second largest producer of palm oil on the continent after Nigeria, with production of 600,000 tons per year, compared to 1.4 million tons in Nigeria.

However, despite the rapid development of the palm oil industry, soaring vegetable oil prices are putting pressure on the West African region. in the first quarter of 2022, the trade deficit of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA) increased by 186.5 billion CFA francs (about 280 million euros) as a result of a 21% increase in imports. The increase in the trade deficit was mainly due to the rise in the price of imported food products, which increased by 62.5% year-on-year for edible oil, 49.5% for wheat and 26.1% for rice.

Despite the challenges, the outlook for the palm oil sector remains positive. Global prices remain high and consumption is expected to continue to grow in the coming years. This has prompted companies such as SIFCA Group (through its subsidiary Palmci), Socfin, Dekel Agri-Vision, Olam and Wilmar to expand their investments and attract new investors.

It is worth noting that besides palm oil, palm trees have other uses, such as the production of edible sauces, animal feed and cosmetics. However, the exploitation of palm trees must be harmonized with the goal of preventing deforestation and ensuring sustainable development. The palm oil industry has great potential in the West African region, but needs to continue to develop in a way that protects the environment.

Soybean: from export to local use

In recent years, Togo and Benin have enjoyed impressive success in terms of soybean production. In just a few years, their soybean production has soared from 44,000 tons and 22,000 tons in 2018-2019 to around 250,000 tons in 2020-2021, respectively, with some of the soybeans grown using organic farming practices. Nigeria, the other major producing region, has also achieved remarkable results, with its soybean production reaching 600,000 tons per year.

These two countries have taken a number of steps to promote the soybean industry. First, they have established inter-industry bodies where the state sets the purchase price. in 2022-2023, the purchase price will be 300 CFA francs in Togo, 270 CFA francs in Benin for conventional products, and 320 CFA francs for organic products. Secondly, they have signed contracts between producers and processors to ensure that producers receive a fair return. In addition, there is government and social capital cooperation on the industrial platform developed by Arise IIP, a subsidiary of the Gagan Gupta Group (Gagan Gupta).

Currently, almost all soybean production is exported to Asia and Europe, and the European market in particular has a strong demand for organic soybeans. However, these countries plan to further extend the chain by adding value by doing crude processing such as soybean oil and meals locally.

In the face of the three major competitive products produced in West Africa, namely maize, soybean and chicken, experts have recommended the development of a common agricultural policy for the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to further promote the development of the agro-industry and enhance regional competitiveness. This would help to further improve farmers' incomes and promote sustainable economic growth in the region.