Senegal loses 25 percent of its crops annually due to lack of storage infrastructure, the Agricultural and Rural Prospective Initiative (IPAR) and the Market Regulation Agency (ARM) has said in a survey.
“(…) the deficiencies of storage and conservation devices mean that up to 25 percent of crop losses are recorded each year, which means that almost all (or a major part) of imports can be avoided,” said the survey on “the collection mechanism for the levy by ARM to finance investments and improve marketing conditions for horticultural sectors in Senegal.”
To reverse this trend, researchers recommend equipping farmers’ platforms with cold rooms to ensure that products are well preserved over a long period of time and developing a depreciation plan for the fixed assets used in the platforms, particularly for storage warehouses, cold rooms and weighing equipment.
The survey also recommended diversifying the range of products marketed by the producers at the platforms (tomatoes, cabbage, aubergine, etc.), ensuring that the prices set by ARM are scrupulously respected at all platforms to guarantee tax equity while avoiding any form of frustration, and facilitating user access to MFIs and financial institutions with the signing of agreements guaranteed by ARM.
TE/lb/abj/APA