Ivory Coast has set aside 380 million euros to back up cocoa and cashew producers who are key exporters for the West African country hit by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Growers of cotton, rubber, palm oil and coffee will also benefit from the aid, worth roughly $410 million, government spokesman Sidi Toure said after a cabinet meeting.
Ivory Coast is the world’s top cocoa producer, accounting for 40 percent of the market last year.
Between five and six million Ivorians depend on cocoa for their livelihood.
The coronavirus pandemic is not having a direct impact on agriculture, but exports could drop because of the global economic downturn.
Communication Minister Sidi Toure announced the measures, which also include 152 million euros for Ivory Coast’s sprawling informal economy.
The funds are part of a 2.6 billion euro “economic, social and humanitarian” plan announced on March 31 by Prime Minister Amadou Gon Coulibaly.
The government has forecast that the pandemic will cut growth in half, to 3.6 percent, this year.
Ivory Coast has to date registered 626 cases of COVID-19, with six deaths.
