Ivorian Prime Minister Patrick Achi and Attiogbevi Somado Eklou, Head of the Agriculture Division at the General Directorate for West Africa of the African Development Bank (AfDB), members of the government and international partners proceeded on Wednesday, the official launch of the Agro-industrial Pole Development Project in the North Region (2PAI-North), in Sinématiali (northern Côte d'Ivoire). The gigantic project will transform the agro-industrial sector and stimulate inclusive agricultural growth, reduce poverty and reduce the country's food imports. The project financed to the tune of 87.6 million euros, through three loans: the first of 42 million euros from the AfDB, the second of 12 million euros from the African Development Fund – the concessional financing window from the Bank Group – and the third loan of €33.6 million, granted through the Africa Growth Together Fund, a fund co-financed with China. © Illustrative photo/Ivorian Prime Minister Patrick Achi officially launched the North Agro-Industrial Park project The project also benefits from the financial support of several other donors: the ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development (EBID) (72.2 million euros); the OPEC fund (51.8 million euros) and the Saemaul Foundation for globalization (6 million euros). The project targets the rice, corn, mango, cashew, shea sectors as well as animal and fish products. In particular, it provides for the installation of a serviced central hub (roads and various networks, electricity with green energy and solar lighting, sanitation, one-stop shop, waste recycling, etc.) to accommodate large industrial units and related services. (logistics, services). Five aggregation and service centers will be built to serve as sites for storage, secondary packaging and primary processing of agricultural products. The project provides for the construction of several dams: six hydro-agricultural dams to irrigate 5,000 hectares of cultivable land and twenty agro-pastoral dams to supply market garden plots, so as to improve adaptation to climatic hazards. © Illustration photo/Some ready-to-use machinery for the Agro-Industrial Park project in the North of Côte d'Ivoire The project covers the regions of Bagoué, Hambol, Poro and Tchologo, which have approximately 2.16 million inhabitants, or 9.4% of the Ivorian population. Agriculture and livestock represent 60 to 65% of economic activity. Some 400,000 people (half women and young people) are expected to directly benefit from the Agro-Industrial Pole Development Project in the Northern Region, and see their incomes increase. It should reduce unemployment and underemployment and enhance food and nutrition security. The project will generate 25,000 direct jobs and 45,000 indirect jobs and benefit some 1.2 million people indirectly. Ultimately, the project will contribute to boosting and diversifying agricultural production in Côte d'Ivoire, with processed agricultural products available in greater quantities. The incomes and quality of life of beneficiary populations, especially women, will also be sustainably improved, and the creation of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises will be facilitated – almost a third of which are owned by women entrepreneurs.