Rural populations in Benin will soon have easy access to digital solutions thanks to a World Bank support to the tune of $100 million.
In a statement to APA on Wednesday, the World Bank explained that the support aims to improve access to broadband services in rural areas and promote the use of digital solutions to enhance the efficiency of value chains, financial inclusion and market access.
Through this cash injection, millions of farmers will be impacted.
Nearly 1.6 million small farmers, including one million women, will benefit from the project, which will have a positive impact on the 560,000 people working in four agricultural sectors: rice, maize, shea and vegetables.
The objective is to improve small producers’ access to information, financial services and markets, thereby increasing productivity and sales volumes and reducing post-harvest losses.
The project will also help Benin to improve connectivity and access to digital services in rural areas, by strengthening the optical fiber network in the city of Parakou and densifying related infrastructure in and around Parakou.
The project also plans to promote the rehabilitation of approximately 600 kilometres of rural roads and to maintain 2,400 kilometres of roads over a four-year period in the main production area concerned.
UB/te/lb/as/APA