Presentation for the food and nutrition security course

1. 2SCALE
Welcome to the webinar about
2SCALE VEGETABLE PARTNERSHIP
IN WEST AFRICA
Denis GNAKPENOU, Innovation Specialist
Adodo ABALO, Action Researcher

2. 2SCALE
Background
2SCALE: an incubator for inclusive business
Inclusive business
Commercially viable &
sustainable business
that involves low-
income communities in
a way that is
benefitting them.

3. 2SCALE
Project ….
&
Pilot
To test and fine-tune a
private-sector driven
approach to broker,
facilitate and scale
inclusive agricultural
value chains
Background

4. 2SCALE
Focus on partnerships (PPPs)
Means to an end!
53 PPPs in 10 countries on four groups of commodities:
staple crops, vegetable and fresh produce/potatoes, sow
and other oil seeds, and animal production

5. 2SCALE
Vegetable value chains in West Africa
(i) open market outlets and small
street shops;
(ii) supermarkets, hotels and
restaurant chains;
(iii) processed vegetable chain;
and
(iv) export market. Both internally
in West Africa (from North to
South) as export to Europe.

6. 2SCALE
Vgtble in WA - Key constraints
(i) low availability of and
knowledge on improved inputs;
(ii) limited agronomic skills and
practices;
(iii) poor food safety for both the
domestic and export markets;
(iv) poor postharvest
management; and
(v) weak linkages between
producers and buyers, and other

7. 2SCALE
Goal : Vegetable partnership / EWIT
The partnership aims to facilitate access of
each smallholder farmer in the target
vegetable partnerships to the best EWIT
varieties that respond to market
requirements, and to facilitate the use of
good agricultural practices to improve
competitiveness of vegetable clusters.
How :
• by improving access to quality seeds to
SHFs, and by strengthening marketing
and distribution channels to consumer
markets, including BoP
• Partner with farmers, agro inputs dealers,
Micro finance institution

8. 2SCALE
Business model
based on:
Reliable and
transparent vegetable
seed distribution
network
&
Inclusive breeding
programs tailored to
SHFs demand

9. 2SCALE
Main achievements : Governance in the partnerships
Design of a governance strategy for the
partnership : 3 levels
 More regular meetings to coordinate
activities within ABC
 Establishment of ABC hubs/mega ABC to
strengthen exchange of experiences, in
particular in collective marketing,
business planning.
 Once a year, all vegetable ABC organize a
governance meeting to evaluate progress,
design new strategies and take corrective

10. 2SCALE
Main achievements: Brokering partnerships
 4 Dutch lead firms involved : EWIT – RIJK
ZWAAN – FERM O FEED – KOPPERT
 Other International lead firms: ELEPHANT
VERT, BIOFERTIL
 Others national firms involved: AGRO BIO
PHYTO - ALIDé – SONGHAÏ – A LA FERME
GENIALE, TIKOLA, etc.
 +40 ABCs developed: 64873 producers
(22376 about 35% of women) involved
 204 SMEs (including 75 headed by women)

11. 2SCALE
Main achievements: Capacity building
 4 Learning cycles (ICRA) for BSS to
support ABC per year
 (for example in 2015 ) More than 10
000 producers trained
 Actions research implemented and
fields visits organized
 Market surveys and prospections
 Farmers strengthened in
negotiations, Contractual agriculture

12. 2SCALE
Main achievements: Capacity building
 Strengthen business relationship
between FBO, SME (Agro input
dealers, Micro finances institutions,
etc.)
 Capacity building of FBOs in
organizational and institutional skills
 Safety standard of food
 Credit management and financial
literacy

13. 2SCALE
Main achievements: Access to finance
Loans of almost 500 million
FCFA (US$ 1,000,000)
disbursed to 125 farmers in
2015 for inputs and small
equipment in Benin
Tripartite agreement in Nigeria
between AACE Food, LAPO
and FBO
Women marketers linked to
FBO for input supply in Mali

14. 2SCALE
Main achievements: Gender and diversity
• Specific access to finance
products for women in Benin
• Access to input (irrigation
material) credit for youth in Benin
• Women cooperatives supported
in Mali
• Post harvest training for women
(solar dryer)
• Women involvement in
ABCs Governance

15. 2SCALE
Main achievements: BoP market
• Introduction of nutritious
leafy vegetable, Kangkong,
Ipomoea aquatica
• Quick adoption of
production due to easy
production and high yield
(lot of biomass, continuous
harvest)
• Good taste
• Cheap seeds

16. 2SCALE
Key outcomes: Increasing EWIT business
Crop Increase of sales
volume (per year)
Observation
Onion: 25% Based on this success, development of two new hybrid
rainy season varieties (Red Star F1 and Red Jewel F1)
Tomato 20% also mainly for the rainy season,
Chili: 5% Not really adapted variety
Okra 5% The African market wants the short and fat type with
over 8 ridges and very slimy.

17. 2SCALE
Key outcomes: improving SHFs business
• Improved technical skills
• Capacity of farmers to produce in
all seasons
• Availability of adapted high yield
and resistant varieties
• Increase crop yields
• Improved quality food production
• Better education on Safe Use of
Pesticides

18. 2SCALE
CHALLENGES
• Poor access to seed/poor distribution network
• Need of time to build trust and transparency
• Weak organization of product distribution
network for scaling out
• How to ensure sustainability of the partnerships
• Control of pests and diseases

19. 2SCALE
THANKS