USDA PRO-Cashew Project Hosts Launch Event
By: Cnfa, Cultivating New Frontiers In Agriculture
Tags: Usda, Cote Divoire, Agriculture, Farming, Cashew

U.S. Ambassador to Côte d’Ivoire, Richard K. Bell (left) and the Ivorian Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Honorable Kobenan Kouassi Adjoumani, (right) at PRO-Cashew launch event in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire

On November 19, 2020, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) West Africa Cashew Project (PRO-Cashew) implemented by Cultivating New Frontiers in Agriculture (CNFA), officially kickstarted the project with a launch ceremony on Thursday, November 19th at the American Andrew Young Center in Abidjan.

The event served as a platform for dialogue between stakeholders in the West African cashew sector, and highlighted the project’s objectives to boost the competitiveness of the sector by improving the efficiency, quality and policies related to cashew production and trade. Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the event was attended in-person by key project personnel, in line with local health guidance, and online by participants from Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Nigeria, Benin, Burkina Faso and the United States.

Cashew fruits

Introduced in West Africa in the 1960s as way to fight erosion and desertification, cashew production has provided a major revenue stream for countries in the region, many of whom now lead in global cashew production — Côte d’Ivoire followed by Nigeria, Benin, Burkina Faso and Ghana. Over the past decade, it has also become a critical commercial activity for smallholder farmers in West Africa, generating $1.5 billion in export sales for over 1.1 million farmers due to increased demand, orchard expansion, and increased government prioritization.

While West African cashew production is growing faster than that of any other region, many producers face reducing yields and declining productivity due to aging orchards, limited technical and financial capacity, an underdeveloped nursery sector, and trade policies that weaken public and private-sector support. Addressing these challenges, speakers at the PRO-Cashew launch highlighted the ways in which the PRO-Cashew Project aims to create a more competitive West African raw cashew nut for the international market.

The launch event began with introductory remarks by U.S. Ambassador to Côte d’Ivoire, Richard K. Bell, and the Ivorian Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Honorable Kobenan Kouassi Adjoumani.

U.S. Ambassador to Côte d’Ivoire, Richard K. Bell offering remarks at PRO-Cashew launch event in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire

Ambassador Bell emphasized the potential of PRO-Cashew to help increase cashew yields, increase trade and investment to “mutually benefit farmers, processors, traders, and consumers alike.”

Minister Adjoumani noted that “PRO-Cashew will contribute to the achievement of the national strategy’s objectives for developing the competitiveness of the cashew value chain in Côte d’Ivoire, and will help promote cashew nut production and marketing in West Africa.”

Ivorian Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Honorable Kobenan Kouassi Adjoumani, offering remarks at PRO-Cashew launch event in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire

The event also featured a presentation on USDA’s Food for Progress framework and history in West Africa from Agricultural Attaché for USDA in Ghana, Dan Archibald. The event concluded by showcasing three success stories of online interventions between a local cashew cooperative and exporter EcoCajou, a U.S. cashew kernel buyer Terra Nova, and another U.S. cashew buyer Caro Nut who continue to support PRO-Cashew with their sustainability planning. PRO-Cashew Chief of Party, Jean Francois-Guay, also rounded out the event by presenting on the project’s objectives and range of activities across West Africa, and facilitating a robust Q&A session where participants were able to ask questions about PRO-Cashew’s prospective activities.