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UNITED NATIONS

ECONOMIC AND

. SOCIAL COUNCIL

Ii

_{, \} ECONOMIC COMMISSION FOR AFRICA

Sub-Regional Meeting on Economic Co-operation in West hfrica Niamey, 10 - 22 October 1966,

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LIMITED

E/CN .l4/INR/l22/il.dO..2 30 September 1966 Original: ENGLISH

NOTE ON DOcmmrT E/CN.14/INR/122

ESTAllLISmffilJT OF FOOD PROCESSING llTDUS'rRIBS IN liEST AFRICA

(Comment by the secretariat)

M66-l371

r •

E/CN.14/INR/122/Add.2

The following notes, which are an addendum to the Report on Food

P~ocessing industries in West Africa, (Document E/CN.14/INR/122/ and Add.I), are intended to present a broad outline of the revisions that would be

required before the report could be circulated in its final form. It is believed that the share of processed food in total food consumption in 1980 would be oonsiderably larger than has been indicated in t!le report.

Food consumption patterns and quanti ties are expected to be one of the areas of greatest chan6e affecting the sub-reeion during the next ten years. Roughly half of the present population never obtains food from the monetary sector and as these subsistence persons enter the monetary sector of the economy, their eating habits will change rather drastically.

A

man with a full-time jcb cannot afford to spend 4 -

6

hours every day preparing his food for meals. Also, thoRe people already in the monetary sector of the economy can be expected tc intensify their demand for food products which do not require lengthy individual processing ar.d preparation.

At the present time, about

50

per cent of all the consumption income (in the monetary sector) is spent on food. As the sub-region develops economically, this percentage '~ll naturally decrease (Europians spend about 30 per cent of their income On "ood products). However, the present West African diet is not yet adequate, particularly as to the protein intake. Thus, as the income of individuals in 'lest Africa rises, they may be expected to cr.an-,e t)'Air eating habits to include not only more but better food. Because of this expected improvement in diets, the food ,nIl cost more and the secr~tariat estimates that the same percentage (50 per oent) of consumption income nill continue to be spent on food in 1980 as in 1963.

In order to improve the diet and still allow time to earn a living, West .kfricans will consume considerably more processed foods than presently.

More than 75 per cent of every dollar spent on food now buys unprocessed items such as oasava, unmilled rice or fresh vegetables. lheGe food products 5enerally require lengthy processing in thp. home befvre t~ey may be consumed.

In contrast, ~uroP9anc clpend les8 than 25 per cent of their food budget ~n

unprooessed food.

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E/ON.14/INR/122/Add.2 PaISe 2

For social, political and economic reasons, the Secretariat er:visaCes a very rapid growth in the ',Ie"t .··.frican food processing industry. These industries are almost ideal for a developing economy. They require

relatively little capital and can De started, often, on a very small scale.

These industries require few highly trained employees, and in fact, are often started without foreign help. Finally, it is the nature of these industries that the food is considerably enhanced in utility at very little added cost, by the processing,

The food processing industries report projected an apparently ambitious

8

per cent annual growth rate for these industries. However, 'at this growth rate, ;:est iifricans would still be spending

67

per cent

of their food budget on unprocessed food in

1980.

The 3ecretariat feels that people will demand and governments will want to help provide a better standard of living than this modest change indicates, and that ldth proper governmental incentives, and assuming the rest of the development plan becomes reality, the food processing industries can and should brow at a much faster rate than

8

per cent.

Based on the analy8is of data the Secretari"t eotimates the followinG 6To1nh rates ;or the industries shown:

•

• 1

•

•

Indus t:;:;y:

Bakery

Fruit and vegetable preserving

~~cat pr o c e s s i.ng

Dairy Fish

Grain

Average

Annual Growth in Output between

1963-1980

16.2 %

10.7 %

5.0 %

7.3 %

9.7 %

15·2 %

12.2 %

E/CN.14/INR/122/Add.2 Page 3

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^•

i •

Wi th these growth rates, West ldrican consumers (I"onetary sector) will spend only 40 per cent of their 1980 food budgets on unprocessed food

• (compared with 75 Per cent in 1963) and approximately $1,500,000,000 additional gross output will be achieved than under the conservative assumptions of the Food Processing Industries Report.

The remainder of this paper present selected summary statistics from the detailed analysis prepared by the Secretariat based on the 12.2 per cent averabe growth rate shown above~ Although the detailed data

exist, no attempt is made here to show individual country benefits relative to individual food processing industries. These benefits will be

described more completely when the revL,ed food processing industries report is presented.

Total Industry Data

The food processing industries are expected to grow from a gross output (1963) of $447 million to 81,760 million in 1975 and $3,153

million in 1980. ApprOXimately 125,000 new jobs will be oreated between 1963 and 1975 in these industries. The net balance of payments for processed foods (trade outside the sub-region) is expected to change

from an unfavourable .100 million balance in 1963 to a slight ($5 million)

fav~urable balance by 1975.

These and other data are shown in the table below:

(million US$)

Gross Output Plus import.,!!:/

Less ,::;xport.,!!:!

Total consumption Value Added

Investment Outlays:

Required 1964-1975 Required 1976-1980 Number of emplcyees (OOO's)

Jill

::; 447 145

44

~ 548 81

53

l2l2

$ 1,760 174 179

$ 1,755 320 653

177

1980

$ 3,153 255 340

$ 3,068 568

694 316

~/ axc Iudan g those within the sub-region

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E/CN.14/rNR/122/Addo2

Page 4

Individual Industry Indicators

The table below shows selected data for individual food prJcessing

industries. These must be read with the understanding that these project~ons.t are functions not only of past trends but of expected development efforts • ~ by Governments and private individuals. These industries must grow at

some minimum rate and there is, of ccurs e-js ome practical maximum rate "h!.ch they could not exceed. Between these two unknown figures there is a

fairly wide range of growth rates which could actually

.

be achieved which rate is at least partly dependent on the actions of the econowic planners attending the Niamey Conference.

Domestic Gross Output

1963

Actual

Projections for Annual

1975

1980,,-_--:;G,row.!ih._Jla..12

(million US$) Bakery

Fruit and vegetal Ie Meat

Dairy Fish Grain

Total Average

63 380

^80G

"6 cd.

J.. ~LID

53 180 301 10.7

142 266 327

⁵⁰⁰

3 4 8 7.3

54 163 259

^{9, "}

132 767 1,458

^15,2

~ .

__ ^.--

447 1,760 3,153

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12.2%

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