Cultivating
Sustainable Futures
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Khadija Niang at the European Parliament for COLEACP
Khadija Niang embodies the future of Africa, the hope of better days for young people from modest but virtuous backgrounds. At the same time she represents all the difficulties faced by this generation from which the leaders of tomorrow must emerge, the executives who must make the African bet work; feed Africa and turn it into one of the biggest agro - industrial forces. To move beyond religious socio-cultural fatalism, by breaking the traditional codes.The only one of a family of nine who has succeeded in getting to third level education, she is taking the risk of going off the beaten track. Having to choose between education and starting a family, taking the risk of being misunderstood by her family, by a potential future husband, are all difficult dilemmas to overcome.She wanted to be a doctor, but the system offered her agronomy. Between feeding or healing one’s neighbor, there is little difference. After 3 years of studying for a professional qualification and 2 years of work experience in large European companies, she realized that her ability to influence her country policies and therefore the future of her peers, was too limited. She decided to find ways to continue her studies to become an engineer at a recognized European university. Savings, part-time jobs and student loans are to be managed in addition to studies.From a distance, she continues to manage the “Green Globe”: a cooperative society that she created 2 years ago which provides agricultural services by young agronomists. On the 22nd of November at the EU parliament, Khadija had the opportunity to speak for the first time in public, which she did with fervor and brilliance.Khadija is the first spokesperson for young African agronomists at COLEACP. Although our activities have always been directed at young people in Africa, we have decided to help them express themselves, be heard and influence the decisions that will shape their world tomorrow. Far from a ‘ fashionable trend’, more like a logical element of our methodology already applied for 5 years.The COLEACP has founded the development of its training programs on the gap between our beneficiary company needs and the real skills on offer by Human Resources. This is how we created 100,000 jobs with our PIP 2 programme and how we are ready to ramp up to millions of jobs…. if we have the means to do so.
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African youth at the heart of debate for the 2017 AU-EU summit in Abidjan
COLEACP has started the journey towards Abidjan AU-EU summit next week. Yesterday, amongst a sea of promises, political speeches, COLEACP brought a fresh and new voice of reality from Africa’s youth into the heart of the European Parliament to the “High level conference towards a renewed partnership for Africa”.Ms Khadija Niang, “spokesperson” for the young Africans working in agriculture, told her story, shared her struggle for recognised qualifications and training so that she may secure a successful career in horticulture at home in Senegal.Khadija’s story and plea is not unique. She is one of many promising young talents being mentored by COLEACP across the African Union. All of them wishing to access adapted training which is well tuned into the needs of agri-businesses in Africa.Interestingly, the same plea was echoed in the panel speeches and recommendations from the representatives of the EU and African private sector, who realise that without well qualified human resources, sustainability and competitiveness will not be feasible.This is the message which COLEACP will bring to the European African Business Forum next Monday in Abidjan and to the Leadership for Agriculture forum ,Tuesday 28th November, organised on by the African Development Bank & Rockefeller Foundation.Guy StinglhamberCOLEACP General Delegate
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Start of the year message from the General Delegate
The European dream: from “virtual reality” to “real virtuality”At the end of 2014, having supported the “Agenda for change” during the EDD (European Development Days) through the “PPP4PPP” Brussels declaration, we wrote that the poor did not have time to wait any longer.In 2015, they took to the road by foot, by “boat” and on the shoulders of their parents towards the European dream, in fear of their lives.This dream has taken on a different dimension with the boom in ICT in poor countries. It has been transformed from “virtual reality” to “real virtuality”, identified, geolocalised and far closer than paradise.Hope must be given urgently to the young Africans and this hope must be converted into reality to avoid these tragic exodus and belligerent indoctrinations.The private sector, a source of hope!COLEACP and its members are convinced that good management of their affairs participates - and must participate even more - in the well-being of their entire community. Every business head, from the micro-business to the large multi-national, has a responsibility in the social and economic development of his region.African agriculture is trying to find its way, it must reinvent itself to face up to the challenges of hunger and poverty and feed the world in the not so distant future.Africa has major assets to take up this challenge:- available arable land, - significant margins for improvement, - and above all ingenious, courageous human resources endowed with traditional know-how. For the past fifteen years COLEACP has elected to bank on these human resources.All together, associated with new technologies, they embody the concept of “sustainable intensification”.Europe is also reinventing its agriculture and its agribusiness - closer to man, more nature-friendly -; this could be called “sustainable de-intensification”. Our organisation, COLEACP, is in the front row of these changes. Our traditional members, the ACP exporters and the European importers, are combining with the Small Producers and their organisations to supply a rapidly-changing international, national and regional. Mass distribution is knocking more and more strongly at our door.There is now general agreement in recognising that African agriculture will not be transformed without incorporating the small producers properly in its value chains. Competitiveness cannot be based on poverty. Profitable small producers, dynamic SME and large businesses must therefore bring their technology, their know-how and their ability to invest.This gives us an exceptional opportunity to move this world forward, that explores spatial infinity as infinitely small, but has failed to eradicate hunger and extreme poverty.The large private groups, the public sector and the civil society are joining forces to combat these scourges for the first time. Let us, together, make sure that this is reality, not just an idea. Do not disappoint the small producers, nourish their dreams and turn them into local, non-virtual and distant “real reality”. Let us dream local and consume global!COLEACP has conceived the Sustainability and Competitiveness programme to support them better in this daily challenge.COLEACP is changing its support approach to agri-food businesses in the Southern countries. We have put together a new programme focusing on competitiveness, in line with the post-2015 goals and matching the European Union criteria for support for the private sector.COLEACP has redefined its strategy, its operation and the nature of its missions to pursue this objective. This rationale is based on the observations compiled by its experts during field assignments, the expectations expressed by the ACP agri-food businesses, the consultants and the public authorities and also the guidelines drawn up by the European Union in its recent strategy for support for the private sector in developing countries.The objective is competitiveness. In other words, make sure that the technical skills acquired by the businesses serve to improve their economic performances and, beyond that, help to release the agri-food production potential in developing countries. The COLEACP support will therefore extend to all entrepreneurial development, including such aspects as market analysis, marketing, the cold chain, logistics, invoicing, administration, etc.This diversification is designed to set up a virtuous circle to resolve the main problem of SME in Southern countries - access to credit. By supporting them in consolidating their economic pillar, COLEACP will help to improve their bankability, so that they ease their way towards obtaining financing from credit organisations and thus expand their development.Competitiveness and responsibilityProfitability, competitiveness, bankability - admittedly, but with a broader vision. COLEACP believes that the economic pillar can only be consolidated in line with the two other pillars of sustainable development: contributing to social well-being and minimising the environmental impact. Only this threefold consistency will encourage lasting competitiveness of sectors and businesses.The sustainability charter has been prepared with this in mind. It is gradually being introduced, based on a training programme designed to incorporate its precepts into the day-to-day running of the business. The charter will give the businesses a clear framework to use in communicating their commitment and their progress towards sustainable development without necessarily having to invest in certifications. But COLEACP has gone beyond that, by designing a management tool that is an integral part of the new programme.COLEACP has used its experience to consider both the needs of its beneficiaries and the guidelines of its lending institutions, mainly the European Union.Call for Financial Partners:The Sustainability and Competitiveness Programme, initially designed for a seven-year period with a budget of 80 million euros, has so far found an initial budget of 20 million euros from the European Union. To put all its potential at the service of development and follow the recommendations of technical assessments, COLEACP will shortly be launching a call for financial partners to complete this first budget envelope and achieve the goals set initially.We hope that the institutions will response positively and quickly to this call.See you soon!Guy Stinglhamber COLEACP Delegate General
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Fit for Market programme – Strengthening business competitiveness through more sustainable practices
“Fit For Market” (F4M) is up and running. F4M is part of the 11th intra-ACP indicative programme (2014-2020) between the European Union and the ACP Group of States. It is due to be rolled out over 5 years (2016-2020) with a total budget of € 25 million (of which € 20 million from the European Union). The specific objective is to enable smallholder farmers, producer groups, farmer organisations, and micro, small and medium enterprises, to access international and domestic fruit and vegetable markets by complying with SPS issues and market requirements, in a sustainable framework. The aim is to support these companies, so that they are able to benefit from current and future opportunities on international, regional and national markets.F4M comes within the scope of COLEACP’s mission to “develop an agricultural and food product sector (especially fruit and vegetables), that is inclusive and sustainable, primarily in the ACP States and between these countries and the European Union”.The first half of 2016 was marked by the end of the activities of COLEACP’s two flagship programmes, PIP2 and EDES. Thanks to the resources made available by the EDF for these two Programmes between 2010 and 2015, companies supported by COLEACP benefited from a 62% turnover increase, creating thereby 100,000 jobs. Results that paved the way for F4M.Read the COLEACP annual report
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Fit For Market official launch at the ACP House: unanimous enthusiasm!
The official launch of the “Fit For Market” Programme took place at the ACP House on the 6th of December. Besides the launch of a new programme, it was also a great opportunity to celebrate past achievements given the longstanding historical Public Private Partnership between the ACP, the European Commission and the COLEACP.All the positive testimonies on COLEACP actions were appreciated by the staff and members of the Board also present: a real source of motivation and enthusiasm to carry out the future actions of FFM.
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Let's meet at Fruit Logistica 2017
The COLEACP team will be present at Fruit Logistica 2017 in Berlin from 8th-10th of February to meet existing members of the association, as well as new beneficiaries of the recently launched FIT FOR MARKET (FFM) programme.To help us organize appointments, we would like to invite any African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) exporters and European importers who wish to meet with us to contact the COLEACP team as soon as possible by clicking here.For ACP and European companies that will not be attending the exhibition, we are of course at your disposal if you need any information or have particular issues to discuss. In particular, we are available to provide information about the mechanisms for accessing and implementation of FFM. Please note that applications for FFM support are online and can be easily directed to COLEACP.
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Already more than 100 eligible projects from 23 countries
Launched officially on December 6th at the ACP house, the Fit For Market (FFM) Programme has already received more than 100 requests for support from 23 countries in Africa and the Caribbean.More than 60% of the requests were made by companies and producer groups. They concern the fruit and vegetable sector and, more specifically, support for the sustainability of production and business management systems, as well as food safety and phytosanitary compliance.This dynamic will accelerate with the successive missions carried out by the COLEACP team in the countries of Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific. Below, find the geographical distribution of the requests for support.
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General meeting of COLEACP – 12 June 2017
The annual General Meeting of COLEACP will be held on Monday 12th June 2017 in Paris.All members of the association are cordially invited to participate.For more information please contact the General Delegation at dg@coleacp.org