Poultry program links maize, soybean and poultry value chains to cut imports and strengthen food security.
BENIN – The African Development Bank Group (AfDB) has approved a US$112 million loan for Benin to launch the first phase of a long-term agricultural transformation program designed to expand poultry production in the country’s northern Savanes region, with broad implications for food security, rural livelihoods and economic policy.
At the heart of the initiative is a value-chain approach that links maize and soybean production with broiler farming, addressing one of the main structural weaknesses of Benin’s poultry sector: the high cost and unreliable supply of animal feed. By coordinating crop production, processing and poultry rearing, the program aims to lower input costs, improve productivity and create a more competitive domestic industry.
AfDB says the project will help reduce Benin’s heavy dependence on imported frozen chicken while creating new income opportunities for small-scale farmers, traders and service providers. Poultry is one of the fastest ways to translate agricultural investment into nutrition gains, particularly for low-income households, because it delivers affordable protein and generates quick returns for producers. A political and economic priority.
The loan reflects Benin’s wider policy push to achieve greater food sovereignty and limit the drain on foreign exchange caused by food imports. In 2023, the country imported an estimated 98 percent of its poultry meat needs at a cost exceeding US$200 million, exposing consumers to global price shocks and undermining local production.
By supporting domestic supply, the program aligns with government efforts to strengthen northern regions that have historically lagged behind the more urbanized south. It also signals a shift toward integrated agribusiness development, moving beyond subsistence farming toward coordinated market-oriented systems.
AfDB Country Manager Robert Masumbuko said the project draws inspiration from Brazil’s transformation of its Cerrado region, where coordinated investment in crops, livestock and research helped turn a once-marginal area into a global agricultural hub. He noted that broiler production depends on reliable feed supplies, technical know-how and market access. These gaps the Benin Republic’s program is designed to address. Driving scale and structure of the project.
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