The government of Togo has inaugurated its first fruit and vegetable processing unit developed in Tsévié. Minister of grassroots development and youth employment, Myriam Dossou-D’Almeida performed the inauguration ceremony.
The initiative, led by the FAIEJ – the Fund for Support to Youth-led Business Projects was backed, technically and financially, by the GIZ’s Sustainable Economic Development Program (ProDED). The institution injected CFA30 million into the project. The facility will mainly make tomato paste and pineapple juice.
“The commissioning of this processing unit opens up a new page in our country’s agribusiness sector and especially regarding the production of fruit juice and vegetable processing. The unit will help better leverage the strategic position of the Tsévié, notably relative to the Industrial Platform of Adétikopé (PIA), and create jobs for the youth,” said Myriam Dossou-D’Almeida.
Impact on development
With regards to fresh fruit and vegetables, Togo primarily exports pineapples (fresh and processed), leafy green vegetables and other ethnic products to Europe. Although still at low levels, exports of fruit and vegetables from Togo to the European Union (EU) have more than doubled over the past ten years while exports to the WAEMU region have increased by almost 30% over the same period. Horticulture offers one of the few income generating opportunities for women in rural and urban areas and therefore has a considerable impact on development.
Operators in the pineapple subsector are few in number and often cater for a formal market. For this reason they appear to be better structured. The horticultural subsector, on the other hand, is made up of numerous producers, operating either on their own or as part of a cooperative, that supply small scale intermediaries and enterprises with little formal structure.
Since 2016, the country has been facing a significant increase in interceptions owing to the presence of quarantine pests (whitefly, and Bemisia Tabaci in particular), mainly in leafy green vegetables.
