USADF Funds Banana Growers In Senegal:

Implementing Organic Techniques Will Improve Incomes, Ways of Life for Members

WASHINGTON - October 22, 2008

WASHINGTON, D.C. – October 22, 2008 – The United States African Development Foundation (USADF) announced its funding for banana growers in rural Senegal today.  The Association des Producteurs de la Vallée du Fleuve Gambie (APROVAG) will use the grant to create 80 organic plots across 20 hectares to grow bananas.  APROVAG will also develop the capacity needed to market their products as organic. 

USADF President Lloyd Pierson remarked that “This project will improve the income and environmental practices of a group of marginalized rural farmers.  USADF is pleased to support a community based group like APROVAG.”

Bananas are the most eaten fruit in Senegal and organic bananas command high prices on domestic and foreign markets. Unfortunately, APROVAG currently lacks the resources to achieve organic certification. USADF is funding the construction of an irrigation system, the purchase of organic materials, and training for compost techniques.  By the second year of the project, APROVAG will obtain international organic certification for its bananas.  Organic bananas will then be sold at higher prices, increasing incomes for members.

Members of APROVAG worked closely with ADF staff to design the project.  Rama Bah, ADF’s Regional Program Director for Senegal, noted that “APROVAG’s knowledge of local conditions was crucial to this project.  Their experiences as rural producers informed the activities that ADF will fund and the goals that APROVAG will achieve.”

APROVAG’s 1,250 male and female members currently cultivate 272 hectares of land in the Tambacounda region along the Gambia River. The $243,092 grant will be disbursed over five years.

The United States African Development Foundation (USADF) is a United States Government agency dedicated to expanding access to economic opportunity in Africa. Currently USADF operates in 20 African nations. Over the past 25 years, USADF has directly funded nearly 1,100 African projects representing in excess of $150 million in support of African enterprises and local African communities.

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