Niger, December 2021

WORKING WEEK ON DEVELOPMENT OF NATIONAL RICE DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY CONCEPT NOTES IN NIGER

In Niger, rice is the third cereal after millet and sorghum in terms of area and production. Rice consumption has increased sharply from 18 kg per capita to 20.4 kg per capita during the last ten years. To meet the growing demand for rice, Niger relies heavily on imports (526,000 tons in 2018). To resolve this situation of dependence on rice, Niger can only reinvigorate the rice value chain in order to reduce the rice import bill. In this regard, the High Authorities have decided to accelerate the pace of development of the sector in order to reach self-sufficiency in 2025 and to release a stock of security by 2030.

To reverse rice importation trend, Niger developed a new rice strategy (NRDS II) with an overall objective to reach production levels of nearly 900,000 tons of paddy in 2025 and 1,520,000 tons in 2030. In order to do so, the focus will be on intensification and modernization of the sector, strengthening of processing activities, improvement of the local rice competitiveness and on empowerment of actors and their organization. In order to help the implementation of the strategy, it is necessary to develop bankable projects. It is in this context that a working week was organized to develop NRDS II concept notes, from 6th to 10th of December 2021, at Homeland Hotel in Niamey.

Chaired by Permanent Secretary General of Ministry of Agriculture, this workshop saw participation of main actors of the segments of the rice value chain in Niger. The objective of the workshop was to develop concept notes that will serve as a basis for negotiation with the Government and donors in order to implement the strategy.

 

Key outputs / Results

The participants developed three concept notes, that could help achieve the objectives of the first phase of the NRDS II. Summary of these concept notes is given below.

1. Project to support intensification and modernization of rice production: In this context, it was recalled that the government of the 7th Republic adopted Strategy for Food and Nutrition Security and Sustainable Agricultural Development known as “3N Initiative” which devotes an important place for rice because of the huge gap between supply and demand for rice which results in a strong dependence on imports. To address this, the NRDS II was developed to improve the resilience of the rice sector with the aim of enabling Niger to be self-sufficient in rice by 2025. It is in this context that this project aims to support the intensification and modernization of rice cultivation. Project intervention area will include the national territory with a focus on rice basins. The General objective of the project is to contribute to “improving the resilience of rice production systems against the effects of climate change”. Specifically, it will aim to: (i) intensify rice production and (ii) modernize production systems. To achieve this, the strategy adopted is based on concentration of the Government’s efforts under its sovereign mission (development of irrigation schemes and supporting the financing of inputs through the establishment of guarantee funds) and strong involvement of the private sector in both production and in access to inputs and agricultural machinery and equipment. The cost of the project is estimated at FCFA 115 billion over 5 years, of which 86% to be researched and 14% acquired (12% private sector contribution and 2% State contribution excluding its contribution in kind). The partners targeted for financing will include, amongst others, AfDB which supports irrigation schemes development, JICA for heavy equipment, AGRA for supporting involvement of the Private Sector, World Bank, IDB, and AfricaRice for supporting the development and acquisition of quality inputs.

 

2. Project to support improvement of competitiveness of local rice: This project was chosen because in addition to the low production of rice, a large part of local production is processed in an artisanal way, making the quality of local white rice low. This situation, along with other factors, makes local rice very uncompetitive. If nothing is done to reverse the trend, the situation will worsen, especially in a context where the Government’s desire is to increase production. It is in this context that it was decided to develop a project that will help improve the competitiveness of local rice. The general objective of the project is to contribute to improving the competitiveness of local rice in Niger by: (i) improving the processing of paddy rice; (ii) improving the profitability of production, and (iii) supporting marketing. The strategy adopted to achieve the objectives is to strengthen the processing units while bringing them up to standards, to reduce production costs in order to guarantee a reduced price to the consumer, and to create conditions for a regular flow of production by improving distribution channels, bringing marketing infrastructures up to standard and interconnecting markets. The cost of the project is estimated at FCFA 3.6 billion; including 83% of the amount to be sought from development partners such as World Bank, AfDB, and the private sector.

 

3. Project to support empowerment of actors in the rice sector in Niger: This project is justified because the materials used in the production of rice do not allow an improvement in productivity or even the attractiveness of the sector among young people who constitute an important reserve of labor. This is why it is urgent to provide actors with technological innovations capable of improving the quality of the work force and above all of establishing an endogenous management of the sector. It is in this context that the project to improve the empowerment of actors is developed. The general objective of the project is to contribute to the empowerment of actors in the rice sector in Niger. Specifically, this will involve: (i) relying on research and / or extension institutions to make technological innovations available to actors, and (ii) supporting the organization of producers. The approach adopted for the implementation of this project is based on partnerships and on a demand-driven and functional approach of Federation of Rice Production Cooperative Unions and Rice Inter professionals’ organization. For the partnerships, it will bolster research and extension services in order to develop and test innovations before their dissemination and scaling up. For the empowerment of producer organizations, it will help them develop an economic model oriented towards the provision of services. The cost of the project is estimated at nearly 3 billion FCFA, of which 12% has been acquired. The partners who will be solicited for the remaining 88% will be, amongst others, AfricaRice, IFDC, JICA, German Cooperation, Luxdev, TIKA, BID, and private seed companies.

With these preliminary project ideas, it is planned to refine them and promote them amongst donors and especially the private sector. To this end, after proofreading the concept notes, a fund matching activity will be organized before organizing a business meeting on the NRDS II.