The Benin government, with the support of the World Bank through the WACA Benin project, launched the Agamè women's cooperative agricultural products processing unit on February 1, 2023. This initiative is part of the fight against poverty and the strengthening of physical and social investments in the project's intervention zone.

Composed of 732 women grouped in 12 groups, the CTPA cooperative has built a processing unit for agricultural products on a 5-hectare estate in Ganwotissa in the district of Agamè, commune of Lokossa, worth thirty-nine million (39,000,000) CFA francs. This unit, financed by WACA Benin to the tune of thirty-seven million (37,000,000) CFA francs, will enable the cooperative to carry out its income-generating activities under better conditions and with greater ease.

WACA Benin, through its component 3 "strengthening physical and social investments", supports cooperatives and groups to ensure better management of natural resources in the Community Biodiversity Conservation Areas (CBCAs) it finances. A total of 250 microprojects are financed in the project's intervention zone, and the CTPA cooperative is part of one of them.

The Agamè processing unit is a jewel that the CTPA cooperative now has at its disposal to better valorize agricultural products from family farming and improve its working conditions. This initiative will undoubtedly contribute to poverty reduction and socio-economic development in the areas targeted by the project. 

Author: Carol COOVI
Administration and Communication Officer
UAP WACA Benin