SWAC presentation on food issues
On 16 May, the Sahel and West Africa Club Secretariat (SWAC/OECD) participated in an EU InfoPoint session in Brussels on "Food security: at the heart of demographic, migration and security challenges". The session was organised together with the Directorate-General for International Cooperation and Development of the European Commission. SWAC’s presentation recalled that the challenges facing food security in West Africa should not be overshadowed by the resurgence of demographic, migration and security concerns on the international agenda. The food sector is of central importance; it is the largest economic sector in the region, far ahead of extractive industries, cash crops or the energy sector. The food economy offers huge potential for creating more jobs, stimulating stronger and more inclusive growth, opening up a wider field of opportunities - in rural and urban areas - for agricultural producers and entrepreneurs, and pulling the most vulnerable out of poverty and insecurity.
