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Ivory Coast farmers fear heavy rainfall might affect cocoa yield

Published

1 year ago

June 12, 2023

There are fears among farmers in one of Africa’s largest cocoa producers, Ivory Coast that recent heavy rainfall in most of its main cocoa regions might affect yield.

Already, some plantations in the lowlands are flooded following rains from last week, threatening the April-to-September mid-crop.

According to farmers quoted by Reuters, two consecutive weeks of rainfall had damaged access to plantations, making it difficult to get beans out of the bush leading to fears that buyers would refuse to buy beans in the coming weeks as the weather was regularly overcast and it was difficult to dry beans properly.

One of the farmers, Desire Mea, who farms near the western region of Soubre, where 177.3 millimetres (6.98 inches) fell last week, 120.3 mm (4.74 inches) above the five-year average said “the rains were very heavy. We now need enough sunshine because the plantations in the lowlands have been flooded.”

However, another farmer, Aman Koffi, who farms near Daloa, where 26.8 mm (1.06 inches) fell last week, 3.6 mm (0.14 inch) below the average said, “the rains have slowed and we’ve had enough sunshine. This will help the cocoa.”

According to a report by Statista, Ivory Coast produced approximately 1.45 million tons of cocoa beans in 2012/2013 and is expected to produce 2.23 million tons in 2022/2023. The country was the leading cocoa-producing country in 2021/2022.

Although the World Bank says agriculture accounts for 4% of global gross domestic product (GDP) and in some least developing countries can account for more than 25% of GDP, inconsistent and harsh climatic conditions pose threats to achieving the best from Agriculture in the continent. While it is a case of excessive rainfalls in the West African region, North and East Africa have their challenges with drought.

Related Topics:Cocoa Featured Ivory Coast Rainfall

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IMF mission concludes 4th loan program assessment in Egypt

Published

3 days ago

November 22, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

Following the completion of a recent visit to Egypt, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has announced that its mission had achieved significant strides in policy talks aimed at concluding the fourth review of the IMF loan program.

The review is the fourth in Egypt’s most recent 46-month IMF loan program, which was authorised in 2022 and increased to $8 billion this year following an economic crisis characterised by high inflation and chronic foreign exchange shortages. It may unleash more than $1.2 billion in financing.

Along with reaffirming its commitment to maintain a flexible exchange rate system, the IMF stated that Egypt “has implemented key reforms to preserve macroeconomic stability,” including the unification of the currency rate that facilitated imports.

Earlier on Wednesday, Egypt’s Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly said Cairo has asked the IMF to modify the targets for the programme not only for this year, but for its full duration, he added without giving more details.

“Discussions will continue over the coming days to finalize agreement on the remaining policies and reforms that could support the completion of the fourth review,” the IMF added in its statement.

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Kenya seeks $750m from World Bank, obtains $200m from AfDB— Official

Published

4 days ago

November 20, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

The head of debt management for the finance ministry told Reuters that Kenya had obtained a $200 million loan from the African Development Bank (AfDB) and was negotiating a fresh $750 million loan with the World Bank.

After being forced to abandon proposed tax rises costing more than 346 billion shillings ($2.68 billion) in June due to fatal demonstrations, the East African nation’s administration, which has been grappling with significant debt, has been frantically seeking fresh funding.

The Finance Ministry’s public debt management office director general, Raphael Owino, told Reuters that the IMF’s October clearance of the seventh and eighth reviews, which opened the door for a $606 million loan tranche, had aided the ministry’s talks for more loans.

“The World Bank is coming on board, riding on the back of IMF receipts,” Owino said. “The AfDB is already on board.”

The discussions for more assistance, which came under the World Bank’s “Development Policy Operations” (DPO) with the government, were confirmed by a representative at the organization’s Kenya office.

“The amount of the current (loan) is yet to be determined. The amount will also depend on the implementation of the policy reforms agreed upon,” the spokesperson told Reuters, adding that past DPO loans averaged about $750 million.

In May, the World Bank approved the latest round of DPO loans, totalling $1.2 billion.

According to a statement made last month by Finance Minister John Mbadi, Kenya has set a foreign borrowing goal of 168 billion shillings for the fiscal year ending in June 2025.