The West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA) has adopted a 2040 vision to achieve self-sufficiency in rice production and reduce its dependence on imports. The union's commission presented a white paper on the rice sector, which outlines a strategy to increase production and reduce imports. The vision aims to boost rice production from 8 million tons to 18 million tons of white rice, or 27.8 million tons of paddy, to meet estimated consumption needs of 30 million tons.
UEMOA's current rice production is dominated by rain-fed agriculture, with an average yield of only 1.6 tons per hectare, compared to 5 tons per hectare in irrigated farming in Asian countries. The low productivity is attributed to limited use of quality inputs, with certified seeds contributing to 40% of yields but only being used by 20% of farmers regionally. As a result, the union's dependence on imports has worsened, with 51% of rice consumed in UEMOA being imported in 2021, leaving a self-sufficiency rate of 49%.
To address these challenges, UEMOA has defined a common vision with the private sector to achieve food self-sufficiency through contractual, productive, and sustainable agriculture. The vision involves increasing the use of certified seeds, improving yields, and developing irrigated farming. Four key areas have been identified: knowledge and innovation, development of irrigated areas, industrial productivity, and integration of the community market. The goal is to reduce imports from 49% to 10% by 2040.
The first area of focus is knowledge and innovation, which aims to adapt the rice sector to climate change through research and technology. This includes increasing the use of certified seeds from 20% to 90% and training in value chain professions. The second area involves developing irrigated areas to increase production, while the third area focuses on industrial productivity, aiming to increase industrial processing from 2% to 90% of production by 2040.
The fourth area of focus is integrating the community market, which involves strengthening infrastructure linking production basins to regional consumption hubs and establishing a harmonized regulatory framework on quality and support policies. However, financing remains a crucial issue, with the total need to achieve the 2040 vision estimated at 9,396 billion FCFA, with an expected economic impact of at least 3,568 billion FCFA in annual revenue from 2040.
UEMOA has launched a call for coalition, positioning itself as a conductor, with the first five-year program (2026-2030) estimated at 2,932 billion FCFA. This program aims for an intermediate stage of 65% self-sufficiency, or 14-15 million tons of paddy, with target yields of 3 tons per hectare in rain-fed agriculture and 7 tons per hectare in irrigated agriculture. The program also forecasts 20% transformation ensured by aggregators and a reduction in post-harvest losses.
The financing model is based on a sharing of roles, with the state expected to mobilize 74% of financing, particularly for hydro-agricultural developments that fall under public goods. The private sector is expected to contribute to industrial transformation and, partially, to developments within the framework of public-private partnerships. UEMOA and technical and financial partners will intervene at 4% to support reforms.
Key points
- UEMOA aims to increase rice production from 8 million tons to 18 million tons of white rice by 2040.
- The union seeks to reduce its dependence on rice imports from 49% to 10% by 2040.
- The total financing needed to achieve the 2040 vision is estimated at 9,396 billion FCFA.
