Africa has great potentials and unique abilities to supply a substantial quantity of cashew for the global market. The cashew sector is almost looked at as a new economic venture for farmers and processing countries, nevertheless Ghana and for that matter Africa has the ability to make a significant contribution to the global demand.
This was made known by Rita Weidinger, the Executive Director of the African Cashew initiative (ACI); at the Consultation of African Public and Technical Actors in Cashew held in Accra on the theme “Opportunities of the African Cashew Sector”. The forum served as a framework to discuss the challenges and potentials of the African Cashew Sector.
Ms. Rita Weidinger drew the attention of delegates at the forum to the growing demand for cashew nut across the globe stating that cashew consumption in India has more than doubled in the last 10 years, that of Europe has grown by 30% and demand in China is also on the rise. Africa is the only continent that has the opportunity to supply this demand by increasing yields and investing in processing.
According to her, the market for cashew has become supply driven as the demand keeps growing. She thus urged governments of the continent to put in place consistent and coherent strategies in the value chain, by investing in research for the growth of the sector.
She revealed that the Africa Cashew Initiative, in cooperation with the African Cashew Alliance (ACA) continues to inform policymakers and government officials about the potential of cashew-related income for poverty reduction and the importance of value addition for cashew producing areas.
She was however glad in noting that African governments are already implementing and improving enabling policies and strategies to ease access to the local cashew sector for international companies in growing African economies.
The German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development
On the other hand, Christopher Raul, a delegate from the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) also made mention of his outfit’s support for agricultural projects in Africa stating that, agriculture holds the key to a broad-based economic growth, poverty reduction and food security in Africa. Agriculture also has the potential of enhancing the capacities of individuals, organizations and societies to improve their living conditions through the efficient and sustainable use of resources to achieve their goals.
The International Trade Centre.
Kevin Musa, the Associate Trade Promotion Advisor of the International Trade Centre (ITC), Office of Africa, mentioned that local consumption has been one of the concerns of the International Trade Centre and that his outfit stands prepared to support companies with interest in importing and exporting cashews.
He continued that, the growing elimination of trade barriers in the ECOWAS regions has paved way for Common External Tariffs (CET) and has also encouraged the boost of cashew production in Africa. He therefore urged African countries to tap from the economies of scale.
Ministry of Food & Agriculture.
Mr. Seth Akoto, Deputy Director in charge of Cashew at the Ministry of Food and Agriculture also indicated that Ghana’s cashew sector in recent years experienced developments and fundamental changes because of the dedicated attention in intensifying research which has enhanced productivity as well as encouraging farmers to imitate best farming practices.
The high-level consultation forum organized by the ACi brought together high public officials from the Ministry of Food and Agriculture, Public Pan-African Actors: African Union Commission, NEPAD Planning and Coordination Agency, UNDP , UNIDO, Financial Institutions delegates and other technical partners: BMZ and International Trade Center (ITC).
By Desmond Frimpong.