West Africa Lines Up $1.54 Billion for Rice Production Drive
West African governments and investors have pledged $1.54 billion to boost rice production across the region. Imported rice still accounts for a large share of food sales in many West African countries. The commitments emerged from a rice investment roundtable in Accra, Ghana. The event brought together officials from ECOWAS member states, development finance institutions
West Africa Lines Up $1.54 Billion for Rice Production Drive
West African governments and investors have pledged $1.54 billion to boost rice production across the region. Imported rice still accounts for a large share of food sales in many West African countries. The commitments emerged from a rice investment roundtable in Accra, Ghana. The event brought together officials from ECOWAS member states, development finance institutions and private-sector investors. The funding will support irrigation projects, fertiliser supply, processing facilities and other agricultural infrastructure. Infrastructure Projects Secure The Largest Share Infrastructure and support projects attracted the largest share of funding. Investors pledged $964 million for those initiatives. Fertiliser and agricultural input projects secured $104 million. Irrigation projects attracted $45.8 million. Farming operations and farmer aggregation initiatives received $40 million. Rice processing and milling projects secured a further $14 million.
Nigeria And Togo Lead In Pledged Funding
Nigeria and Togo attracted the largest commitments. Together, they accounted for $707.5 million in indicative funding. Governments across West Africa still spend billions of dollars on imported rice each year. They have struggled for years to increase domestic production. Population growth continues to drive demand for rice. Global supply disruptions have also highlighted the risks of relying heavily on imports.
Countries Present $25.6 Billion Investment Plans
Fourteen countries have prepared national rice investment plans worth a combined $25.6 billion between 2026 and 2035. Those plans form part of a regional programme valued at $28 billion. Governments attending the Accra meeting also backed targets to increase yields and reduce post-harvest losses. They want to reduce the region’s dependence on imported rice over the next decade.
Pledges Face First Review
The funding announced in Accra remains at the commitment stage. ECOWAS will review the proposals in the coming weeks. Governments must submit implementation plans before investors finalise funding arrangements. The next few months will show how many of the pledged projects move forward. That includes irrigation schemes, rice-processing facilities and on farm investments.
