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The African Development Fund board of directors has approved an initial 99.16 million U.S. dollar funding for developing rice cultivation value chains in West Africa.

The first stage of implementation will benefit Gambia and Guinea Bissau, the Economic Community of West African States, and the Africa Rice Center (AfricaRice) at the regional level.

The Regional West Africa Rice Development project aims to increase food security through investments in value chains and achieve rice self-sufficiency in the region by 2030.

The funding will be offered in three grants from the African Development Bank Group’s concessional loans window. A fourth grant will come from the Transition Support Facility, which supports the continent’s most fragile countries.

The grants represent 91.2 percent of the project’s total cost.

The funding will benefit 20,00 rice farmers in Gambia with half of them being women and young people.

In Guinea-Bissau, 16,000 rice farmers will benefit, including 5,000 women and 3,000 young people.

They will be supported in accessing seeds and fertilizers and provision of agricultural equipment.

Rice producers will also benefit from strengthening processing units and marketing local rice.

At the national level, the project plans to develop irrigation infrastructure, support the distribution of supplies and improve climate-smart seeds. The project also aims to strengthen agricultural cooperatives.

At the regional level, AfricaRice will provide regional technical support to encourage innovation in rice cultivation value chains. This includes assessing the needs for seeds and varieties in various countries and producing and distributing improved seeds.