In Ivory Coast, €7.6 million in funding should help to digitalise the agricultural ecosystem through the creation of new companies specialising in agritech and, more specifically, sustainable cocoa.
DigiGreen & Agri. This is the new project launched in Ivory Coast to support the development of agritech. The initiative is supported by the local subsidiary of telecommunications operator Orange, the European Union (EU) and the German Agency for International Development Cooperation (GIZ). The three institutions, which merged their ideas during the Team Europe Initiatives, will inject €7.6 million into Ivorian start-ups specialising in digital innovation.
The aim is to “help create decent jobs and increase sustainable investment in the agricultural ecosystem”, explained Francesca Di Mauro, the ambassador of the EU delegation in Abidjan. Cocoa is the main value chain concerned by DigiGreen & Agri. Ivory Coast is the world’s leading exporter of this raw material. The funding from Orange, the EU and GIZ should enable a new generation of entrepreneurs to be brought to the fore through the creation of businesses focused on sustainable cocoa.
Agritech to counter massive deforestation
These businesses will be run mainly by young people and vulnerable people (women, disabled people, rural communities), and will receive funding to develop digital solutions for marketing their products. Emphasis will also be placed on promoting eco-responsible practices, given that cocoa farming is accelerating massive deforestation in this West African country.
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In its report, Lies in Packaging, the non-governmental organisation Mighty Earth states that nearly 14,000 hectares of forest disappeared in Ivory Coast and Ghana in 2018 to make way for cocoa farming. That’s the equivalent of 15,000 football pitches. The phenomenon can be explained by the growing demand from agri-food companies (chocolate). Agritech start-ups therefore have a major role to play in turning things around, especially as Europeans will be banning imports of products derived from deforestation from 2025.
Benoit-Ivan Wansi
