Togo is set to receive $26.6 million from the African Development Bank (AfDB) to fund its agro-processing project.
The grant which has been approved by the bank’s board will finance the west African nation’s second phase of the Agro-Food Processing Zone Project.
“This will focus on the construction and operationalization of the agro-industrial park, including building a network of infrastructure such as roads and networks, administrative buildings, electrification, water and fibre optics) to create the right conditions for establishing private businesses,” said Wilfrid Abiola, the AfDB Country Manager in Togo.
The agro-processing business zone is expected to offer opportunities to young people and women in the Kara and Savanes regions, in the north and far north of the country, respectively.
The project will support the creation and operationalization of the company that will manage the agro-park and the construction of an agro-industrial park in Broukou by opening roads, developing electricity and street lighting networks, and building an administrative, financial, civil protection and access control centre.
The project will also fund the purchase of small agricultural equipment for vegetable-growing plots, particularly for women.
The plan is also to build the capacity of agricultural producers, including women, in production, processing, storage and marketing to help them find markets and sell agricultural products, AfDB said.