Senegal River Valley: The PRDC-VFS is banking on agropastoral value chains to boost the cross-border economy

The Senegal River Valley Community Resilience and Development Project (PRDC-VFS) aims to accelerate the development of agricultural and pastoral sectors between Senegal and Mauritania. Gathered in Saint-Louis for a two-day regional workshop, stakeholders are working on priority investments to strengthen the competitiveness of these sectors, improve producers' incomes, and promote job creation.

The Senegal River Valley has significant agricultural and pastoral potential, but its exploitation still faces several structural obstacles. To better utilize these resources and strengthen economic exchanges between Senegal and Mauritania, the PRDC-VFS is launching a new phase of its intervention, focused on developing agropastoral value chains.

It is with this in mind that a regional workshop is being organized around the theme: "Promoting resilience, connectivity, and cross-border integration of agropastoral value chains." The meeting aims in particular to share the results of the value chain mapping in the Senegal River Valley and to identify priority investments likely to support their development.

Speaking at the opening of the proceedings, the coordinator of the PRDC-VFS, Mamadou Diedhiou, emphasized the importance of this approach in moving from diagnosis to concrete actions. He reiterated that the project, a joint initiative of Senegal and Mauritania with financial support from the World Bank, aims to improve access for border populations to integrated, inclusive infrastructure and services adapted to the effects of climate change.

The project is based on three main areas of intervention: strengthening community resilience and inclusion, making priority investments to improve territorial connectivity, and regional coordination and knowledge management.

Four sectors at the heart of the discussions

Agriculture and livestock farming occupy a strategic place in the economy of the territories along the Senegal River. However, stakeholders continue to face difficulties related to water management, access to quality inputs, product preservation and processing, storage, marketing, and financing of activities.

To better understand these constraints, the PRDC-VFS commissioned a mapping study of agropastoral value chains, with technical support from the Pan-African Institute for Citizenship, Consumers and Development (IPAR).

This study aims to better identify the potential of the various sectors, the stakeholders involved, and the obstacles hindering their competitiveness. Its findings will serve as the basis for defining priority investments within sub-component 2b of the project, which focuses on developing agropastoral value chains.

During the two days of work, participants will examine four major sectors: the cereal sector, particularly rice; horticulture, with onions, tomatoes, okra and chili peppers; livestock farming, through milk, small ruminants and fodder; as well as the private sector, partnerships and employment.

Beyond infrastructure, the question of financing and sustainability

For Mamadou Diedhiou, the success of this initiative will not depend solely on the construction of infrastructure. The coordinator of the PRDC-VFS particularly emphasized two cross-cutting issues: the sustainability of equipment and access to appropriate agricultural financing.

He believes it is essential to implement effective economic models to ensure the management, operation, maintenance, and renewal of infrastructure. Similarly, producers, professional organizations, and small and medium-sized enterprises must be able to benefit from financing mechanisms that are tailored to their specific circumstances and capabilities.

The objective is to ensure that the planned investments produce lasting economic benefits, particularly through improved producer incomes, the creation of added value, the strengthening of sector competitiveness and job generation.

Senegal and Mauritania urged to strengthen their cooperation

The cross-border dimension is also a major focus of this initiative. For the project coordinator, the Senegal River should not be seen as a border separating two territories, but as a shared space for production, exchange, and solidarity.

The development of agropastoral sectors therefore requires better complementarity between the Senegalese and Mauritanian territories, a fluidity of trade exchanges and a pooling of experiences.

Through this workshop, the PRDC-VFS aims to generate operational recommendations and clearly defined priorities that can guide future investments.

Mamadou Diedhiou finally reaffirmed the commitment of the coordination team to work with all stakeholders to translate the conclusions of the meeting into concrete achievements for the benefit of the people of the Senegal River Valley.