Invited by the Government of Côte d’Ivoire, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) is actively taking part in SARA for the first time to share key results of the implementation of the Regional Agricultural Policy, ECOWAP, the reference framework for interventions in the region’s agroforestry and fisheries sector.

The ECOWAS delegation, led by the Commissioner for Economic Affairs and Agriculture, Mrs Massandjé Touré-Litsé, and comprising Directors, Heads of Division, Programme and Project Coordinators and Experts, will be contributing to the discussions at the conferences and workshops planned by the Exhibition Secretariat, while also organising and running its own side-events/panels on key themes on its stand.

“African agriculture faced with internal and external shocks: structural innovations to improve agricultural sectors and guarantee food sovereignty” is the central theme of the 6th edition of the Agriculture and Animal Resources Fair (SARA), which officially opened its doors on 29th  September 2023 in Abidjan during a ceremony chaired by H.E. Alassane Ouattara, President of the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire.

SARA is a major agricultural event in West Africa, providing a platform for meetings and exchanges of experience between stakeholders in the sector of agriculture, animal resources and fisheries. It provides an opportunity for visibility, establishing contacts, sharing experiences and lobbying through its visitors, national and international investors, the countries represented, professionals and the various exhibits on the stands.

This is why the speakers at the opening ceremony: SARA’s General Commissioner, Kouassi Kouakou André, the Minister of State, Minister for Agriculture and Rural Development, Kobenan Kouassi Adjoumani, and the Prime Minister, H.E. Patrick Achi, on behalf of the Head of State, highlighted the unique nature of SARA as an opportunity to bring together stakeholders along the agricultural value chain, to share their know-how and thus contribute to food and nutritional sovereignty in a global context marked by the high cost of staple foods.

At the ECOWAS Exhibition Stand, the Ivorian Ministers of Agriculture and Rural Development, Kobenan Kouassi Adjoumani; Animal and Fisheries Resources, Sidi Tiémoko Touré; Construction, Housing and Urban Planning, Bruno Koné and the Minister of Foreign Affairs, African Integration and the Diaspora exchanged views with the ECOWAS delegation and praised the efforts of the sub-regional institution to develop the agricultural sector in Member States and at regional level.

As part of the meetings to strengthen the partnership, the Commissioner for Economic Affairs and Agriculture and her delegation held talks with the Regional Director for West and Central Africa of the World Food Programme (WFP) to strengthen cooperation between the two institutions with a view to ensuring food security for the people of West Africa.

During ten days, at its stand in Pavilion A, Institutions and Sponsors Pole, Entrance B, or during sectoral meetings, workshops and panels, ECOWAS will be showcasing its achievements in the agroforestry and fisheries sectors, while forging or strengthening strategic working partnerships with public and private institutions and international organisations active in the agricultural sector.