The African Development Bank has contributed $1.5bn towards advancing the export of value-added agricultural products through the Special Agro-Industrial Processing Zones initiative.
The President of the Bank, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina said this at the 2023 Africa Investment Forum Market Place in Marrakesh, Morocco, themed “Unlocking Africa’s Value Chains.”
The SAPZ Programme which was also launched in Nigeria solely aims to boost household incomes, facilitate job creation in rural agricultural communities—especially for youth and women—and strengthen food and nutritional security.
Adesina emphasised the pivotal role of exporting value-added agricultural products in Africa’s wealth creation during the inauguration of the Alliance for SAPZs.
He said, “Africa must end the export of raw agricultural commodities. We must recognise that the fastest way to poverty is via the export of raw commodities, while the highway to wealth is from the export of value-added products.
