Combating post-harvest losses in Casamance: 30 young people, mostly women, trained to build food sovereignty and create sustainable jobs

In Casamance, post-harvest losses continue to deprive communities of numerous agricultural products just months after periods of abundance. To reverse this trend, the World Food Programme (WFP) and the Institute of Digital Technologies (ITD) conducted a 30-day training program for 30 young people, mostly women, including people with disabilities. The goal is to prepare for the establishment of a post-harvest loss management unit capable of creating jobs, strengthening food security, and contributing to the region's food sovereignty.

The Casamance region is often presented as one of Senegal's agricultural breadbaskets. However, this wealth contrasts sharply with a worrying reality: every year, significant quantities of fruits, vegetables, and other agricultural products are lost due to a lack of adequate processing, preservation, and storage facilities. This situation leads to shortages of certain products out of season and limits producers' incomes.

It is to meet this challenge that the World Food Programme (WFP), through its Salouma project dedicated to the development of agricultural value chains, organised a thirty-day training in Ziguinchor for young people selected to lead a future Post-Harvest Loss Management Unit (PHU).

At the end of this session, 30 beneficiaries, chosen from over 400 candidates, received their certificates. This cohort was marked by strong female participation, with 80% being women, and also by the inclusion of people with disabilities, in line with the partners' commitment to promoting more inclusive economic development.

For the head of the WFP office for the southern zone, William Diatta, this initiative reflects the evolution of the institution's approach, which is no longer limited to food assistance.

"We felt it was necessary to strengthen the capacities of young people so that they could become development actors and contribute themselves to improving the living conditions of their communities," he said.

According to him, the future processing and preservation unit will significantly reduce production losses in a region facing recurring difficulties in marketing its harvests. It will also contribute to improving access to food throughout the year.

"When we talk about food and nutritional security, the processing and preservation of products are essential elements. That is why we will continue to support these young people so that they are fully operational," he added.

Beyond technical skills, the project's promoters emphasized the personal development of the beneficiaries. Mbagnick Faye, Director of the Institute of Digital Technologies (ITD), believes that economic success begins with self-confidence, leadership, and initiative.

“Many programs have been implemented before, but commitment and trust were often lacking. We worked on these dimensions first before addressing entrepreneurship and financial management,” he explained.

The young people benefited from modules covering personal development, entrepreneurship, financial management, teamwork, and project management. The aim is to equip them with the necessary tools to effectively manage the future unit as a genuine value-creating business.

ITD also intends to continue its support well beyond training in order to guarantee the realization of the project on the ground.

For the beneficiaries, this initiative represents a genuine professional opportunity. Group spokesperson Ibrahima Sorry Diallo points out that the unit addresses a problem faced daily by producers in the region.

“After periods of abundance, some products become difficult to find even though they were available in large quantities a few months earlier. This unit will allow us to preserve and process harvests so that they remain accessible even in times of scarcity,” he stressed.

He specifies that the 30 young people selected have complementary profiles in the fields of accounting, commerce, transformation and management, in order to ensure the optimal functioning of the UGPP from its installation.

Claudine Géma Gomis, a beneficiary of the training, shares the same observation, emphasizing the expected collective impact of the project.

According to her, the future unit will not exclusively serve trained individuals, but all actors in the agricultural value chain. Producers, traders, processors, wholesalers, and retailers will be able to have their products processed there to improve their preservation and market value.

“Casamance has enormous agricultural potential, but a lot of produce is lost during periods of high production. This unit will help reduce these losses while creating job opportunities for young people,” she said.

Through this initiative, the various stakeholders aim to transform a major constraint on Casamance agriculture into a development opportunity. By focusing on youth, women, and people with disabilities, the partners hope to create a model capable of sustainably strengthening employment, the economic resilience of rural communities, and the food sovereignty of Casamance.