The United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) has brought together West African small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and business support organisations (BSOs) to unlock the rice value chain.

The two-day rice value chain activation programme was held virtually on September 28 and September 29, through the ECA Subregional Office for West Africa (ECA/SRO-WA).

It was implemented under the West Africa Business Linkages Platform (WABLP) and aligned with the ECOWAS Regional Rice Programme.

Ngone Diop, director of ECA/SRO-WA, said the initiative sought to turn evidence and analysis into commercial partnerships, stronger regional value chains and increased intra-regional trade in rice.

Ms Diop was represented by Amadou Diouf, chief of the Sub-Regional Initiatives Section, ECA West Africa.

“The initiative builds on ECA studies, including the assessment of rice and cocoa value chains between Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana, and the impact of the war in Iran on West Africa.

“ECA has engaged more than 150 SMEs in the rice sector to understand their constraints, market opportunities and support needs.

“The consultations highlighted barriers such as limited access to finance, market linkages, processing capacity and cross-border trade opportunities,” she said.

Ms Diop said the sessions were designed to generate tangible business outcomes, including new commercial linkages among BSOs, SMEs, buyers, processors and finance providers.

She said they also targeted letters of intent, memoranda of understanding and other commercial agreements, as well as stronger BSO capacity to facilitate SME market access.

She said that the programme helped to deepen participants’ understanding of AfCFTA market opportunities, regional policy frameworks and rice value chain opportunities.

“A 90-day follow-up mechanism will also be established to help translate discussions into concrete actions and partnerships,” she added.

The WABLP, an ECA/SRO-WA initiative, brings together more than 500 BSOs and SMEs across ECOWAS member states.

The rice programme is the first in a broader value-chain activation approach designed to strengthen enterprise linkages and regional integration.

Over the medium and longer term, the initiative seeks to reduce West Africa’s dependence on external rice, boost intra-regional trade and strengthen food systems’ resilience.

The programme also demonstrates ECA’s commitment to supporting regional priorities, including the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) frameworks, by bringing economic analysis closer to businesses.

(NAN)