<p>“Act for a competitive cashew sector”. It is around this theme that the actors of the cashew sector will reflect and decide on the process of continuous improvement of the marketing and promotion system of the cashew sector in Benin. Organized by CoNEC-Benin, in collaboration with the Interprofession de la filière cashew du Bénin (Ifa-B) and its partners including the Belgian Development Agency (Enabel) through the Profi-Anacarde project, Benin Cashew Day serves as springboard for direct and indirect actors to communicate and lobby and advocate on the real problems of cashew marketing in Benin and to provide solutions and perspectives. It is also an international meeting of exchanges between local actors,regional and international on the dynamics of the cashew sector in different countries.</p> <p>- Advertisement -<br /> - Advertisement -</p> <p>Several speeches marked the opening of the meeting. For the president of CoNEC Péniel Fanou, competitiveness is not an invention but a necessity which is essential for the utility of the sector. If for him, the first edition of Benin Cashew Day made it possible to take stock of the situation, we must now continue to act in the best way possible in the face of an immense challenge, hence, according to him the theme: "" Act for a competitive cashew sector ”. In the same vein, the president of Ifa-Benin Edouard Assogba thanked the government for the reforms undertaken and made a plea for the mobilization of equity. For Nicholas Mancus, head of mission for the Benin Cajù project and representative of financial partners,the wish of all the financial partners is to see this event take place in the long term and on a regular basis over the years. While emphasizing the transformation which represents only 15% of national production, he finds that the political will of the government of Benin, which translates into the objective of seeing the production of cashew nuts return to order. from 140,000 tonnes to 300,000 tonnes in the coming years is an opportunity to be seized.</p> <p>For Abdoulaye Toko, chief of staff to the Minister of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries, the sustainable development of any sector depends on its good governance, which, according to him, is based on good organization. Declaring the cashew days open, Michaël Bassabi Djarra, Chief of Staff to the Minister of Industry and Trade, stressed that the drop in the price of cashews, a situation worsened by the Coronavirus pandemic, does not encourage the actors. The ceremony ended with the distinction of the best players in the sector.</p> <p>Benin is one of the world's top 10 producers of cashew nuts, currently occupying the 8th position of the largest cashew producing countries on the planet. In 2020, Benin produced between 140 and 150 thousand tonnes of raw cashew nuts. About 200,000 Beninese families live on cashew nuts, which today constitute Benin's second largest export product after cotton. In addition, the cashew sector represents several percentage points of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of Benin.</p>