ECOWAS has taken a new step in its support for West African agro-pastoral sector. The Chairman of its Commission, H.E. Dr. Omar Alieu Touray, signed the financing agreement for the Regional Project of strengthening a platform of solutions in support of pastoralism and animal husbandry (PEPISAO II) and at the same time launched the Project in support of the dairy offensive in West Africa (PAOLAO), conducted in partnership with France.

Organized in the presence of diplomatic representatives, government delegates and senior officials of the regional organization, the event marks a strengthened commitment to food security, the sustainability of pastoral systems and inclusive economic development within the region.

During the ceremony, the Commissioner for Affairs Economic and Agricultural Affairs of ECOWAS, Dr. Kalilou Sylla, recalled the expected strategic impact of these two initiatives. The PEPISAO II must contribute to better governance of pastoralism, to the prevention of cross-border conflicts and the strengthening of living together in areas concerned. For its part, PAOLAO aims to boost local milk production, structure the dairy value chain and stimulate job creation, in particular for young people, herders and rural women.

For ECOWAS, these projects are part of a global vision: a more resilient, integrated West Africa and prosperous, where people benefit directly from investments carried out in the agricultural and pastoral sectors