West Africa’s trade monitoring system has collapsed - why this is dangerous for food security

By Olivier Walther, Associate Professor in Geography, University of Florida
Andrea Apolloni, Researcher, French Agricultural Research Centre for International Development, Cirad
Lacey Harris-Coble, PhD Candidate, University of Florida

A decade ago countries in West Africa set up a unique trade monitoring mechanism. Its purpose was to track intra-regional trade in agricultural products and livestock in the region. But the system was closed down in 2022 due to a lack of funding by regional organisations.

The mechanism provided West African countries with data from more than 320 markets and along 10 corridors, enabling the tracking of not only trade patterns but livestock and zoonotic diseases.

The lack of up-to-date trade data has a…

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