MALI and BURKINA FASO: COLEAD and the EU in the fields

The Fit For Market Plus (FFM+) programme was launched in Mali and Burkina Faso through the organization of two workshops in March. In total, 100 participants were present, including companies, professional organisations, cooperatives, service providers and competent authorities. At the event, the COLEAD team presented the evolution of EU market access requirements for fruit and vegetables, as well as the support opportunities available through the FFM+ programme, which aims to “mitigate the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic by strengthening the sustainability of the horticultural sector in ACP countries.”

Following the workshop in Burkina Faso, representatives from the EU delegation and COLEAD visited a remarkable initiative that illustrates the dynamism of local producers despite a complex national political context. It is a store called BIO FARMERS MARKET, which sells organic products and is associated with two production sites located near Ouagadougou. A total of around 1,000 farmers are certified organic for the local market (by CNABIO). In addition to the fact that all of them are committed to organic farming, the production and marketing sites have a strong social dimension, with the involvement of an association (La saisonnière) of 150 women, many of which had been displaced due to events in the northern part of the country.

It is planned that the EU Ambassador will visit BIO FARMERS soon to commend this inspiring initiative. Meanwhile, the EU delegation and COLEAD have begun a fundamental reflection on how to further strengthen, at the national level, the continuous improvement of the food safety of horticultural products intended for the local market, following the example of BIO FARMERS. This type of support would complement the FFM+ programme currently underway in the country and would meet the needs of about 50 companies and producer groups.

This activity is supported by the Fit For Market+ programme, implemented by COLEAD within the Framework of Development Cooperation between the Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS) and the European Union.