Articles
Facts and trends of vegetable production in RADHORT countries of Africa
Article number
1422_7
Pages
51 – 56
Language
English
Abstract
The sub-Saharan region of West Africa has experienced a significant surge in its population, illustrated by an annual growth rate exceeding 3% over the past decade.
Projections indicate that urban population, currently at 45%, is poised to reach approximately 75% by 2050. Despite this demographic expansion, growth of the horticulture sector is not keeping pace.
Consequently, vegetable and fruit production and consumption in this region persist at some of the lowest levels globally.
To address these challenges, ten sub-Saharan African countries – Burkina Faso, Cabo Verde, Côte d’Ivoire, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal and Chad – joined forces and established the “African Network for Horticultural Development, known as “RADHORT” (Réseau Africain pour le Développement de l’HORTiculture). Its mission is to foster collaboration by sharing information for the diversification and sustainable intensification of horticultural crops.
The member countries committed to engage in joined planning and implementation of research and development projects with regional scope.
This initiative emerged as a major outcome of the regional FAO project GCP/RAF/244/BEL. Drawing upon data sourced from FAO and the World Bank, along with relevant bibliographic references, this paper reports some facts and trends of the current situation of vegetable production in these countries.
This information can serve as a foundational framework for further developments of horticulture in rural, urban and peri-urban environments.
Additionally, the paper advocates protected cultivation techniques (PCT), an advanced technology that holds promise for sustainable vegetable production intensification in line with national strategies for achieving food self-sufficiency and sovereignty.
Projections indicate that urban population, currently at 45%, is poised to reach approximately 75% by 2050. Despite this demographic expansion, growth of the horticulture sector is not keeping pace.
Consequently, vegetable and fruit production and consumption in this region persist at some of the lowest levels globally.
To address these challenges, ten sub-Saharan African countries – Burkina Faso, Cabo Verde, Côte d’Ivoire, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal and Chad – joined forces and established the “African Network for Horticultural Development, known as “RADHORT” (Réseau Africain pour le Développement de l’HORTiculture). Its mission is to foster collaboration by sharing information for the diversification and sustainable intensification of horticultural crops.
The member countries committed to engage in joined planning and implementation of research and development projects with regional scope.
This initiative emerged as a major outcome of the regional FAO project GCP/RAF/244/BEL. Drawing upon data sourced from FAO and the World Bank, along with relevant bibliographic references, this paper reports some facts and trends of the current situation of vegetable production in these countries.
This information can serve as a foundational framework for further developments of horticulture in rural, urban and peri-urban environments.
Additionally, the paper advocates protected cultivation techniques (PCT), an advanced technology that holds promise for sustainable vegetable production intensification in line with national strategies for achieving food self-sufficiency and sovereignty.
Publication
Authors
C. Kittas, W. Baudoin, E. Kitta, A. Hanafi, P.A. Seck
Keywords
protected cultivation, vegetables, World Bank, FAO, sustainable intensification, urban and peri-urban environment
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