The Project for consolidation of the cowpea, milk and non-timber forest products value chains in Burkina Faso (Go-In) is currently in its fourth year of implementation. The project’s steering committee, made up of eight technical partners and three financial partners*, met on the 2nd and 3rd of June last.
The project partners made the most of the event to visit a cowpea producers’ cooperative, a local milk processing unit, and a unit producing soaps made using shea butter, and conducted an assessment of the first years of project implementation. It was also an opportunity for the populations involved to give feedback on the concrete effects of the project.
“Before, when we grew cowpea, we had no proper place to store everything we harvested, and this was a real difficulty for us. Now, thanks to the support of the Go-In Burkina project, we don’t just have storage warehouses, we also have shops to sell the products made from cowpea processing” said Nikiéma Awa, Chairwoman of the Na-Songb-Zanga cowpea producers’ cooperative in Komsilga. Mrs. Konseïga, Chairwoman of the Association of Women united for peace, insisted on the support she received for her association’s participation in the Casablanca International Fair to present products made using shea butter.
The 3rd of June was devoted to a presentation of the results achieved by the project, which already has a rate of 90 % physical completion for its first four years of implementation. One of the key activities, related to training and awareness-raising on mowing and preservation of fodder, is 95 % complete.
*The Go-In Burkina project is conducted in partnership with the Agency for the promotion of small and medium enterprises, agriculture and handicrafts (APME2A); the Association for the promotion of livestock farming in the Sahel and savannah (APESS); the Burkina federation of agrifood industries (FIAB); the shea marketing board (TFK); the milk marketing board (TFL); Roppa and Fert. The project benefits from the financial support of the European Union (EU); the Government of the Principality of Monaco; and Agence française de développement (AFD).
The content of this article is the sole responsibility of GRET and can in no case be considered as reflecting the opinion of its technical and financial partners.
