IFAD and EU Food Facility introduce high quality seeds and innovative production techniques

Rome, 2 April 2012 - The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the European Union (EU) have successfully completed the €20 million Food Facility (EUFF) Programme in West Africa. The Programme ran over a period of eighteen months, covering the West African countries of Benin, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Mali and Senegal.

“Together with our partners, the Economic Community of West African States and the International Crops Research Institute for Semi-Arid Tropics, we have improved the access to high quality seeds for smallholder farmers in the region and have trained them in production and farming techniques,” said Adriane Del Torto, IFAD’s project coordinator for the EUFF in West Africa, at a workshop held in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire. “This has supported more than 200 000 rural families to achieve higher yields, increase their income and improve their living conditions.”

The €1 billion EUFF was created as a response to the soaring food prices in developing in countries between 2007-2008, to fund projects that would improve  access to agricultural inputs and services, increase the agricultural productive capacity and address the basic food needs in the West African states.

“With the Food Facility, we have not only provided immediate relief but have sustainably contributed to improve the food security situation in West Africa,” said Didier Nils, Representative of the EU in Côte d’Ivoire. “By building the capacity of farmer organizations and seed producers and by introducing improved production techniques and seed varieties, we have ensured that the impact of our joint work does not end with the closing of the programme but continues in the long term.”

Building on existing IFAD-supported projects and considering national food security strategies, the funds provided by the EU for the West Africa programme, were among others utilized to introduce the ‘minisett technology’ in Ghana. This technology enables smallholders to produce yam seeds with less input and higher yields than traditional methods. In Côte d’Ivoire, the implementing partners established a process to produce certified rice and maize seeds to ensure use of quality seeds. In Mali and Senegal, the establishment of producer cooperatives helped to refill the seed stocks of rice in Mali and groundnuts in Senegal, meeting the increasing demand for quality seeds. Research and biotechnology institutes were involved in the programme and helped improve the quality and variety of seeds in Benin.

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Press release No.: IFAD/28/2012

The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) works with poor rural people to enable them to grow and sell more food, increase their incomes and determine the direction of their own lives. Since 1978, IFAD has invested about US$13.7 billion in grants and low-interest loans to developing countries through projects empowering about 405 million people to break out of poverty, thereby helping to create vibrant rural communities. IFAD is an international financial institution and a specialized UN agency based in Rome – the United Nation’s food and agricultural hub. It is a unique partnership of 168 members from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), other developing countries and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).