African Cashew Alliance becomes the Lead Facilitator of the Private Sector Wing of the Cashew International Consultative Council (CICC)
On 21st March 2017, ACA President, Mr. Florentino Nanque, met with Dr. Adama Coulibaly, the Managing Director of the Conseil du Coton et de l’Anacarde of Côte d’Ivoire, for a working session to discuss partnership with the newly established Cashew International Consultative Council (CICC). This was also an opportunity to reinforce ACA’s partnership with the Conseil du Coton et de l’Anacarde of Côte d’Ivoire (CCA) which manages the new international cashew body (CICC).
CICC is a public sector organization created on the 16th November 2016 in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire. The organization is recognized as the government platform for all cashew-producing countries worldwide. CICC is in many ways the cashew sector equivalent of the World Cocoa Foundation, however a public sector organization. The newly established organization aims to promote cooperation within producing countries and subsequently develop the potential of the economic and social benefit of cashew through value addition. Since the inception of ACA in 2006, the Alliance has had a commitment to develop the sector through value addition in African producing countries, which aligns with the objective of the private sector wing of the Council.
During this meeting, the ACA president, accompanied by its Interim Managing Director, Ernest Mintah and the Head of Sector Organization & Advocacy, Olivier Kabré had a thorough working session with the Director of CCA and his team members, to discuss private sector involvement in the public sector action plan to create a conducive business environment for the cashew sector in Africa. One of the agreements made was that ACA will hence be recognized as the representative of the private sector of the cashew industry in Africa and will work closely with the CICC as a member and lead facilitator of the commission for the promotion and development of the private sector of the Council. To strengthen this collaboration, ACA will bridge the gap between the cashew private sector and the Council by engaging the public sector organizations in private sector advocacy actions as well as contribute to the implementation of projects and provide advisory services on key areas of the value chain in relation to private sector development in member countries.
The African Cashew Alliance Annual Conference 2017 will also engage CICC during the private sector session. The Conference is scheduled to take place in Cotonou, Benin from the 18th to the 21st Of September 2017. Matters arising from the cashew sector and advocacy for government support for favorable policy enforcement will be discussed. Currently, ACA is organizing a Cashew forum on Wednesday, the 29th of March 2017 with the objective of bringing various cashew stakeholders together. This forum aims to develop a joint vision for the growth of the cashew sector in Africa. These two events are expected to kick start the process of tackling the challenges of the cashew value chain.
