Covid-19 en Afrique de l'Ouest: Riposte des États et la CEDEAO _ résultats définitifs et messages clés

1. Covid-19 in West Africa: Response of
States and ECOWAS -Final results
RPCA Restricted Meeting, April 6-8, 2022
Presented by
Alain SY TRAORE*,
Dr.Bio Goura SOULE*
Babou SOGUE*
*Directorate of agricultural and Rural Development of ECOWAS Commission

2. Summary
A. Context and justification
B. Response Measures Typology
C. Regional response measures
D. Specific response measures
E. Key specific measures
F. Specific response measures selected
G. Challenges
H. Conclusion and Recommendations

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A. Context and justification
Compilation, analysis and capitalization of good practices
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has received from
FAO, a LoATCP/SFW/3802 to finance the activities of the RegionalTask Force.
• Monitoring the impact of the pandemic on the region's economy as well as the
level of implementation of response plans in collaboration with the countries.
• Capitalization of good practices in terms of measures and actions deployed by
the States.

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B. Response measures typology
48%
28%
24%
93%
7%
50%
34%
16%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
National
response plans
and specific
measures
Regional
responses
International
initiatives
Cyclical
measures
Structural
measures
Pro-consumer
measures
Pro-producer
measures
Trade and/or
macroeconomic
policy decisions
Geographic coverage: Expected impact over time: Intended Target:
Figure 1: Typology of responses against covid 19
• 706 response measures were identified
Compilation, analysis and capitalization of good practices

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C. ECOWAS Actions 1/2
€2.2 million from the RRSA to assist vulnerable populations in the context of
COVID-19;
The ECOWAS Humanitarian Emergency Fund has mobilized $1 million for
the acquisition of a stock of cereals.
Reallocation of €3.7 million from the "Support to Storage in West Africa" project
for the purchase of cereals and enriched flours to further contribute to the
ECOWAS contingency plan and strengthen the total reserve intervention
capacity of about 6,048 tons of cereals.
Compilation, analysis and capitalization of good practices
Donations of 5,529 tons of
cereals to the most vulnerable
households (May to October
2020) - from the RRSA and the
Humanitarian Emergency
Fund
• Burkina Faso (954 tons),
• Niger, (473 tons)
• Nigeria, (3,309 tons)
• Mali (793 tons)

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D. Specific response measures
4.60%
6.10%
3.00%
4.60%
7.20%
6.00%
2.10%
1.30%
1.00%
18.40%
7.10%
18.30%
3.00%
7.30%
1.20%
11.80%
14.00%
4.60%
% GDP
Countries GDP $US*10^9 Cost 10^9 $US % GDP
Benin 15,65 0,72 4,6%
Burkina Faso 17,37 1,06 6,1%
CaboVerde 1,704 0,05 3,0%
Côte d'Ivoire 61,35 2,84 4,6%
Gambia 1,902 0,14 7,2%
Ghana 72,35 4,31 6,0%
Guinea 15,68 0,33 2,1%
Guinea-
Bissau
1,432 0,02 1,3%
Libéria 2,95 0,03 1,0%
Mali 17,39 3,20 18,4%
Mauritania 7,779 0,55 7,1%
Niger 13,68 2,50 18,3%
Nigeria 432,3 12,80 3,0%
Senegal 24,91 1,82 7,3%
Sierra Léone 3,865 0,05 1,2%
Tchad 10,09 1,19 11,8%
Togo 7,575 1,06 14,0%
West Africa 707,977 32,67 4,6%
The largest shares of GDP were recorded
in Mali, Niger,Chad andTogo with ratios
of 18.4%, 18.3%, 11.8% and 14.0%
respectively.
Compilation, analysis and capitalization of good practices

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D. Key specific response measures
The institutional anchoring of
these two mechanisms
facilitated their deployment at
the onset of the pandemic.
27% 24% 28%
19% 15% 19% 14% 12%
55%
31%
76%
43%
87%
14%
66%
39%
20%
51%
31%
17% 6%
55%
31%
50%
23%
88%
2%
3%
19%
10%
13%
21%
24%
15%
37%
22%
58%
41%
34%
74%
46%
70%
37%
100%
58%
34%
95%
53%
100%
35%
90%
54% 57%
73%
42%
59%
66%
26%
54%
30%
63%
0%
42%
66%
5%
47%
0%
65%
10%
46% 43%
27%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
Protection sociale % du total Soutien à la production % (%)
Social+Production (%) Autres mesures (%)
Compilation, analysis and capitalization of good practices
Social protection measures (51%)
Measures to support production (22%).
73%

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In total, eighteen good practice measures were identified by
the working groups. These were documented and analyzed,
focusing on indicators of success, the number of countries
that have implemented them, estimated costs, their
replicability, and the incubation time of expected effects on
vulnerable populations. Based on the above criteria, they
were ranked in ascending order and a compendium of good
practice was drafted. All participants agreed that it is early
to talk about impacts, especially because most decisions are
not tracked by national statistical systems. In addition, the
pandemic is not yet over and some measures are still being
E. Specific response measures selected

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E . Specific Economics measures selected 1/2
Best practices REASONS OR JUSTIFICATIONS
Countries that have
implemented it
1) Setting up economic stimulus funds
-To save jobs threatened by the closure of
companies and/or the restriction of
activities;
All West African countries
- To finance the needs of companies affected
by the COVID-19 through the granting of
reduced-rate credits.
2) Postponement of credit maturity by
commercial banks
- Safeguarding contractual links;
Burkina Faso
- Support the activities of threatened
businesses
3) Establishment of tax relief mechanisms for the
private sector (exemption from the contribution
of VSEs/SMEs, exemption from taxes and
customs duties on imports of products in the
context of the fight against COVID, suspension
of collection proceedings, reduction of VAT,
cancellation of penalties for delays in the
execution of public contracts)
- Supporting the supply side;
All West African countries
have remitted taxes to
companies affected by the
restrictions and reduced
penalties resulting from tax
audits.
- Safeguarding jobs;
- Stabilize food prices;
- Create an enabling environment for
economic recovery
4) Provision of credit facilities to support SMEs
at low-interest rates.
1. Strengthen the resilience of SMEs heavily
impacted by the restraint measures
the 8 WAEMU countries, Cabo
Verde, Ghana, Liberia, Nigeria,
Sierra Leone

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E. Specific Economics measures selected 2/2
Best practices REASONS OR JUSTIFICATIONS Countries that have implemented it
5) Establishment of improved
warehousing systems (commodity
exchange and warehouse receipt
systems).
2. Limit economic layoffs.
Ghana
1. Reduce post-harvest losses and increase
farmers' income.
6) Support for processing and marketing
of selected commodities (depending on
country priorities).
3. Increase food reserves to ensure food and
nutrition security during COVID and beyond. Benin, Burkina Faso, Ghana;
Liberia; Mali; Niger, Nigeria,
Senegal; Sierra, Leone; Chad;
Togo
1. Low-value addition to selected
commodities
4. Reduce imperfections in agricultural
product markets.
7) Development of virtual agricultural
services (creation of virtual agricultural
markets, e-extension, voucher
mechanism)
- Transmit knowledge without contacts;
Burkina Faso; Ghana; Niger;
Sierra Leone;
- Reduce physical contact in markets;
- Bring innovations in marketing systems;
8) Strengthening of security stocks and
sale of cereals at subsidized prices
- Stabilize prices;
Benin, Burkina Faso; Ghana, Mali;
Niger; Nigeria
- Improve physical and financial accessibility
of agricultural products to vulnerable
households affected by COVID;

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E. Specific Social Protection measures selected
Best practices REASONS OR JUSTIFICATIONS Countries that have implemented it
1) Cash transfers to vulnerable people
1. Improve the food and nutrition status of vulnerable
groups (elderly, pregnant women, lactating women,
children, etc.) due to movement restrictions.
Burkina Faso: Ivory Coast; Ghana;
Liberia; Mauritania; Nigeria; Togo
2. Improve food security and nutrition of vulnerable
people
3. Increase the purchasing power of vulnerable
populations
4. Reduce the level of poverty
- Strengthening social protection;
- Rebuilding the livelihoods of vulnerable groups;
- Improving disposable income;
2) Coverage of water and electricity
bills for social groups
- Improving household disposable income; All countries have covered the
water and electricity bills of
vulnerable groups for a few months
- Supporting demand
3) Setting up a solidarity fund
- Provide food assistance to vulnerable people;
Burkina Faso; Ivory Coast;
Mauritania
- Provide universal health coverage to the population
- Provide a framework for the mobilization of voluntary
contributions;
- Ensure the care of those affected by COVID 19
4) Promote school feeding programs
1. Improving the nutrition of school children
Burkina Faso; Cabo Verde; Ghana;
Nigeria; Togo
2. Support unemployed parents to feed their children
during the pandemic.

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E. Specific Support for agricultural productionmeasures
selected
Best practices REASONS OR JUSTIFICATIONS Countries that have implemented it
1)Reconstitution of productive
assets through the provision of
agricultural inputs and equipment
(Provision of subsidized improved
seeds, fertilizers, and pesticides to
small farmers)
- Facilitate access to inputs;
All West African countries have
ensured the replenishment of
productive assets through the
provision of agricultural inputs and
equipment
Increase agricultural productivity and production
3. Low productivity due to lack of improved seeds
4. Smallholder farmers cannot afford to buy improved seeds and
fertilizers
5. High pest and disease infestation
- Government investment in fertilizer manufacturing
- Investment in improving the seed value chain
- Modernize agriculture through mechanization.
- Improve regulations/standards
Raising input use rates to recommended levels
2) Support for the development of
irrigation
- Strengthen the resilience of the agricultural sector to climatic hazards ;
Ghana; Mali; Sierra Leone; Togo
- Improve agricultural yields ;
- Develop supplemental irrigation;
- Diversify agricultural production
3) Development of agricultural
insurance
- Manage risks related to the agricultural sector;
Burkina Faso; Senegal
- Protecting livelihoods;
- Strengthen the sector's resilience to climatic hazards
5) Promotion and development of
livestock programs (provision of
improved breeds of livestock and
poultry) to smallholder farmers
1. Improve livestock productivity
Ghana; Niger; Mali; Sierra Leone;
Chad
2. Increase the supply and quality of livestock products
3. Improve animal breeds
4. Improve management of grazing reserves
6) Provision of credit and risk-sharing
facilities to promote import substitution
products (rice, onions, tomatoes, etc.).
1. reduce imports of basic food products.
Benin, Niger, Burkina Faso, Mali,
Togo, Nigeria, Liberia
2. Facilitate aggregators' access to sufficient resources to mobilize
commodities.

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E. Specific Administrative productionmeasures selected
Best practices REASONS OR JUSTIFICATIONS Countries that have implemented it
Simplification of administrative,
financial management, and
procurement procedures
- Facilitate disbursements to be more
proactive;
Burkina Faso, Niger and Nigeria
- Facilitate the implementation of
response measures

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1. There were some difficulties in collecting the data.These include:
• the difficulty in finding certain information that is not tracked in the
agricultural statistics system
• the difficult cooperation of certain actors
• the nature of the data to be collected, which requires the establishment of
an inter-ministerial team to facilitate cooperation between actors
2. No synergy of actions:
• The delay in setting up the regional task force did not allow for the
harmonization of actions taken by the countries;
• Difficulty in mobilizing focal points for progress meetings due to the
instability of email addresses.
F. Difficulties
Compilation, analysis and capitalization of good practices

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• Several measures have been taken at the international, sub-regional and
national levels to counter the adverse effects of the pandemic on the socio-
economic life of the population.
• The actions have cost at least 32.67 billion US dollars or 4.6% ofWA's GDP.
• These emergency measures are essentially short-term, cross-cutting and
oriented towards mobilizing resources to support the most vulnerable sectors
of the respective countries, including agriculture.
• The actions most taken, to this end, are in favor of social protection, and
production support.
• Overall, the area of support to local production and social protection are the
most dominant with 73% of the response expenditures against Covid 19.
G. Conclusion and Recommendations
Compilation, analysis and capitalization of good practices

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• Maintain the current regional task force around a food and nutrition security
program to continue monitoring the real impacts of covid 19 on the economy
and food and nutrition security.
• Deepen the analysis of the causes of the current imperfections in agricultural
and commodity markets, in relation not only to the effects of COVID, but also
to insecurity, as well as to other factors that are still insufficiently explored,
• Establish and strengthen an inter-ministerial consultation mechanism in
member countries to facilitate collaboration and the collection of data;
• Strengthen the position of ECOWAP focal points in the mechanisms to be put
in place to facilitate the mobilization of focal points in countries that have not
yet designated their representative to the regional task force.
H. Conclusion and Recommendations
Compilation, analysis and capitalization of good practices

17. Thank you for your attention