Mapping investment barriers and opportunities along the Abidjan-Lagos corridor: Focus on the cassava value chain

AUDA-NEPAD and African Food Changemakers (AFC) are organising an online consultative meeting to assess strengths and weaknesses in the cassava sector along the regional value chain. The meeting will also aim to define the parameters of potential business opportunities and to co-create a regional-level investment case for the cassava sector. It is organised within the framework of the Scaling investments project.

This consultation is invitation-based. However, if you are interested in contributing to the discussion, please get in touch with Hanne Knaepen (hk@ecdpm.org)

Background

The Abidjan–Lagos Corridor (ALC) links one of the world’s fastest-urbanising regions,
where demand for staples such as cassava is rising sharply. Cassava plays a central
role in both urban and rural food systems: it is affordable, widely consumed, and
largely produced within the region, giving it strong potential for intra-regional value
chain development. Its climate resilience and ease of storage and processing make
it particularly suited to a context marked by recurrent climate shocks and
supply-chain disruptions.

Despite these strengths, the cassava value chain remains underdeveloped. Official
statistics capture only a small share of actual trade - up to 95% of flows are
unrecorded - leaving policymakers and investors with incomplete information. The
chain is further constrained by restrictive trade measures, including export bans, as
well as by the predominantly informal nature of the sector, where traders operate
with limited support and high uncertainty. These factors prevent cassava from
realising its full contribution to food security, income generation and regional
integration across the ALC.

This consultation applies the project’s analytical framework - linking food security,
trade, infrastructure and climate agendas - to ultimately help identify bankable
agrologistics investment opportunities within the cassava value chain. The aim is
to move beyond diagnosing barriers and instead highlight where targeted
investments in storage, processing, digital solutions and enabling infrastructure
could unlock corridor-wide value and strengthen climate resilience.