Agriculture

Agriculture is by far the single most important economic activity in Africa. It provides employment for about
two-thirds of the continent’s working population and for each country contributes an average of 30 to 60
percent of gross domestic product and about 30 percent of the value of exports.
Agriculture is also the main source of employment, livelihood and income for between 50% – 90% of the
African population. Of this percentage, small farmers make the up the majority, up to 70-95% of the farming
population.

Clearly the African Agriculture sector is a significant portion of the continent’s economy and as such can
contribute towards major continental priorities, such as eradicating poverty and hunger, boosting intra-Africa
trade and investments, rapid industrialization and economic diversification and sustainable development.

ACCS main objective is to transform African agriculture, building a highly competitive industrial sector and
improving long-term food security in Africa by innovation and appropriated technologies.

One of main agricultural priority of ACCS is the WEST AFRICA AGRICUTURAL COMMODITIES
EXCHANGE (WAACE) or in French called BOURSE DES PRODUITS AGRICOLES D’AFRIQUE DE
L’OUEST (BOPAO)
BOPAO-WAACE which is a vision – with a solution – for a multi-country initiative to build a self-supporting,
commercial/agricultural ecosystem to support and economically develop the farmers and the agronomy of 17
targeted countries (15 ECOWAS countries, and Mauritania, and Chad) based around a shared agricultural
commodities exchange.
BOPAO-WAACE is a technical and commercial solution that defines a framework by which actors can work
together in alignment with the governments and UN sustainable development goals.
In addition to the UN Sustainable Development Goals the initiative supports the African Development Bank
‘Feed Africa’ programme and meets the majority8 of its ‘High 5’ objectives: