Cover_Rebuilding West Africas Food Potential

Chapter 1. West Africa staple food systems: An overview of trends and indicators of demand, supply, and trade 23

rienced the most dramatic production increase, growing from 6 million tonnes in 1991 to over 13 million
tonnes in 2010. The other big producers (Benin, Cameroon and Côte d’Ivoire) also increased cassava
production but at a slower rate. The regional giant (Nigeria) increased cassava production from about 20
million tonnes in 1990 to over 45 million tonnes around 2008 but dropped below 40 million by 2010.

c) Vegetable oils: The rising oil palm and the contracting groundnuts

Figure 16. Top 4 palm oil producers in West Africa (x 1000 tonnes)

Source: FAOSTAT (2012)

The main growth in palm oil production over the last two decades has been in Nigeria, where
production rose by 84 percent from 1990 to 2010; production for all other countries in the region,
including Cameroon, contracted by an aggregate 22 percent over the 1990 to 2010 period. Hence, all
the West African growth in palm oil production appears to be solely the result of production expansion
in Nigeria – although poor data collection might also be responsible for this observation.

Oilseed regional production remains low (palm oil and groundnut production only represent 3 percent
of global oilseeds production and 1 percent of global exports) compared with the global demand and
the huge export potential for West Africa (FAOSTAT 2012).

Table 4. Palm oil and groundnuts production and consumption trends in West Africa 1990-2010

Palm oil

production

Groundnuts

production

(with shell)

Groundnuts

yields

Palm oil

consumption

Groundnuts

consumption

1990 1.2 MT 2.6 MT 978 kg/Ha 1.1 MT 2.4 MT

2000 1.5 MT 5.2 MT 1132 kg/Ha 1.6 MT 5.4 MT

2010 2 MT 6.4 MT 978 kg/Ha 2.7 MT 6.4 MT

90-2000 AAGR 2.3% 7.2% 1.5% 3.8 % 8.4 %

2000-10 AAGR 2.9% 2.1% -1.5% 5.4 % 1.7 %

Source: FAOSTAT (2012); AAGR: average annual growth.

0

200

400

600

800

1.00 0

1.20 0

1.40 0

1.60 0

19901991199219931994199519961997199819992000200120022003200420052006200720082009

Nigeria Côte d'Ivoire Ghana Cameroon