The West and Central African Council for Agricultural Research and Development (CORAF) was in Cameroon recently to support the country in implementing an ambitious new agricultural program.
Entitled Programme de Transformation de l'Agriculture en Afrique de l'Ouest (PTAAO), this intervention aims to expand the use of new technologies and varieties to transform agriculture in West and Central Africa. The program targets young people, women and girls, among other key players in the agricultural sector. It has been set up to encourage young people into the agricultural value chain, to limit growing migration from Africa and to solve the problems of access to employment encountered by most countries. Food and nutritional security is the expected development outcome of the program.
Around 8 million people in 13 countries benefited from the first phase of the program, known as the West African Agricultural Productivity Program (WAAPP). A further 47 million were indirectly reached. PPAAO focused on facilitating the development, promotion and adoption of technologies and crop varieties. Some 200 technologies have been developed under the program and are now helping to boost agricultural productivity in participating countries.
Encouraged by the results of the WAPP, Cameroon and a number of other countries have since sought to join the program in order to improve agriculture and economic growth in their respective countries.
The recent support mission was designed to shed light on how the program works in West and East Africa, to share some best practices, and to identify constraints and possible solutions for the program's success in Cameroon.
The World Bank finances the WAPP. And CORAF provides technical support for its implementation in the countries of the Economic Community of West African States.
Building on the results of the first phase, the World Bank, participating countries and other stakeholders are now looking to extend the results to transform agriculture in West and Central Africa.
During the recent support mission, stakeholders also discussed how the program would collaborate with existing World Bank-supported programs in Cameroon. Discussions also focused on the institutional arrangements required for the effective implementation of the program.
The Board of Directors of the World Bank Group is scheduled to meet in February 2018, during which the final financing decision will be made.