Abidjan to Host the 2nd Edition of the West African Livestock and Meat Exhibition

The 2^nd edition of the West African Livestock and Meat Exhibition will be held in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, at the Palais de la Culture de Treichville from 27^th April to 1^st May 2023. It is mainly funded by the Swiss Cooperation through the PACBAO Project (Support Programme for Livestock Marketing in West Africa) and organised by COFENABVI (Confederation of National Federations of the Livestock and Meat Sector of West Africa). The theme of this edition of SIBVAO (Salon International de Bétail Viande de l’Afrique de l’Ouest), which is a specialised platform for actors in the livestock-meat value chain in West Africa, is “Livestock-Meat Value Chain, a Tool for increasing regional Trade and Job creation in West Africa in a context of insecurity”.

The 2023 edition of the Exhibition is coupled with the Camel Fair (SIBVAO CAMEL FAIR 2023) under the institutional patronage of ECOWAS and the Ministry of Animal and Fishery Resources of Côte d’Ivoire and will see the participation of ECOWAS countries plus Mauritania and Chad. The official kick-off of the exhibition will be done by the Prime Minister of Côte d’Ivoire, Mr. Patrick Jérôme ACHI. Several personalities representing Member States, regional and international institutions are expected to attend the opening ceremony.

Following the first edition which took place in 2016 in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, the second edition is in line with the same perspective of supporting and growing the regional economy with the overall objective of the transformation, profitability and performance of the livestock and meat value chain in West Africa.

To recall, livestock farming contributes an average of 36% to the agricultural GDP of Sahelian countries and 15% for coastal countries. It also contributes 5 to 10% to the exports of the countries in the region, particularly in Chad, Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso. The region’s demand for meat is mainly met by domestic production and supplemented by imports, the value of which was estimated at US$745 million for meat and meat products and US$998 million for milk and dairy products in 2020.

The expansion of current economic and commercial opportunities and the optimisation of future demand for value chain products require innovation and investment in the revitalisation, professionalisation and sustainable development of the West African livestock-meat value chain.

“The International Livestock and Meat Trade Exhibition is an important event for ECOWAS given its objective of promoting the organisational, operational and managerial structuring of the value chain and the livestock and meat market system in West Africa,” Mrs Massandje Touré Litsé, ECOWAS Commissioner for Economic Affairs and Agriculture explains.

Indeed, faced with the challenge of professionalising the sector, ECOWAS has undertaken several initiatives at both regional and national levels with the technical and financial support of partners to support livestock farmers’ organisations.

The expected results of the SIBVAO 2023 will contribute to the achievement of specific objective 4 of the Community’s strategic Framework on Inclusive and Sustainable Development – Improvement of the Business environment, Governance, and Financing mechanisms of the agricultural and agri-food Sector.