West Africa Pursues Bigger Rice Investment to Cut Imports, Create Jobs by 2035
West African leaders and development partners have issued a strong call for increased investment in rice production to boost food security, reduce import dependence, and generate jobs across the region.
The message emerged at the close of the two-day West Africa Rice Investment Roundtable, organised under the AgriConnect Initiative and convened by ECOWAS, the World Bank Group, and the African Development Bank.
Hosted by the Government of Ghana, the event brought together ministers, 15 country delegations, investors, agribusiness leaders, and technical experts to secure concrete financial and technical partnerships for National Rice Investment Action Plans.
With rice demand in West Africa rising faster than local production, participants stressed that large, coordinated investment is needed to move the region closer to rice self-sufficiency by 2035.Targeted investment across the value chain
The roundtable focused on practical opportunities across irrigation, seed systems, machinery, milling, storage, transport, and trade.
A key outcome was the presentation of a strong regional pipeline of projects anchored in national rice strategies.
Participants also called for better policy coordination, risk-sharing instruments, and stronger public-private partnerships to turn plans into bankable projects.
The meeting further strengthened commitment among governments, regional bodies, development partners, and the private sector to work more closely through platforms like the ECOWAS Rice Observatory.
Momentum was also built for a Regional Rice Investment Compact to guide next steps.
AgriConnect Compact
On the sidelines, the Government of Ghana, with World Bank Group support, launched its AgriConnect Compact on June 3, 2026.
The country-led initiative places agriculture at the centre of economic transformation, job creation, and resilience.
It targets more than 2.6 million jobs, improved food and nutrition security for nearly 3 million people, and $3.5 billion in investments over five years.
Priority value chains include rice, maize, cocoa, oil palm, and poultry, with support for irrigation, mechanisation, climate-smart agriculture, and digital innovation.
Resolve
Vice President Prof. Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang said rice must be viewed beyond production volumes.
“The challenge before us is not just about growing more rice, but also about mobilising the scale of capital required to transform agriculture from a subsistence sector to commercial production, and from fragmented production to integrated value chains.
“We must therefore also see rice as a strategic economic asset. It is about jobs for young people, incomes for farmers, and strengthening the resilience of our economies against future global shocks.”
ECOWAS Commission President Dr Omar Alieu Touray said the goal is clear: “to build more competitive, inclusive, and sustainable agrifood systems that strengthen food sovereignty, create economic opportunities, contribute to shared prosperity and progressively achieve regional rice self-sufficiency by 2035. This Roundtable must therefore serve as a catalyst for action.”
World Bank Vice-President for Planet Guangzhe Chen added that “West Africa has both the pipeline and leadership to accelerate real transformation in the rice sector,” while AfDB’s Richard Ofori-Mante noted that agriculture must be treated as a productive sector capable of driving growth, with the rice value chain offering major opportunities for Africa’s youth.
By aligning public and private actors around one regional agenda, the roundtable highlighted the commercial, development, and job creation potential of rice and underscored the importance of partnerships for a more competitive and resilient West African rice economy.
Story by Hajara Fuseini
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