Insights on the Fertilizer Sector from FTWGs

Throughout the 2021 and 2022 FTWGs, several insights came to light regarding the state of the fertilizer supply chain as well as the fertilizer data ecosystem which are outlined below. 

What does the fertilizer supply chain need?

The COVID-19 pandemic, subsequent disruptions to the value/supply chains, and the resulting high input prices on fertilizer put added strain on the fertilizer production ecosystem. In order to protect food security, increased investment in the sector is needed to fortify the system against such disruptions and ensure that appropriate fertilizers are in supply and reach farmers in time for the planting season.    

Specifically, it’s already been shown that the price increases in 2021 negatively impacted apparent consumption of fertilizer throughout markets in SSA, meaning that the world’s most industrialized countries continue to grow their market share and control crop output and agricultural fossil fuel consumption. This dynamic leaves little place for farming in SSA, particularly among poorer families, resulting in lengthy and severe food and employment crises, particularly in rural Africa.

Additionally, the increased prices and foreign exchange volatility have affected private sector businesses in some countries, because suppliers are requesting full payment before supplies are made and are still experiencing issues with timely delivery of products. 

What does the fertilizer data ecosystem need?

Improved methodology is needed for the collection of country-level retail data across all SSA countries. A more refined methodology could increase stakeholders’ trust in the quality of the data. Trust would be increased even more if this new methodology is made publicly available. Once a new methodology is available, countries throughout SSA could employ it, creating a more robust and more trusted data ecosystem.  

Specific recommendations for improving the methodology are: 

• Review the sampling methodology. Ensure that its representative of the agriculture dealers in each county;
• Cover the entire national territory, especially the agricultural regions; and
• Engage other local research institutions to validate the research methodology before going back to the field to collect retail data.

Address data gaps in the fertilizer markets, including gathering information on: 

• Fertilizer cost build-up (CBU) includes all costs associated with the provision of fertilizers from bagging, freight, insurance to clearing, warehousing, etc. Private stakeholders and governments add up these costs to estimate the cost of fertilizer, and this data informs such things as spending in governmental subsidy programs. This information can be used to optimize fertilizer costs and reduce fertilizer prices at the farm gate through better planning, simplified logistics, negotiation etc.;
  

  

• Country-specific information on FUBC through improved arable land under production estimates;
• Disaggregating national-level data;
• Cropland mapping data, in order to ensure there is comprehensive data on SSA’s cropland;
• Seasonal analysis of retail-level data, so that governments know the carryover stocks and leakages. This knowledge helps governments report on more “real” estimates of consumption over the season; 
• Analysis on the impact of government policy interventions, including on policies related to subsidies and the blending market; and
• Identifying all the players in local fertilizer markets, what quantities of fertilizer they produce, and how much fertilizer is used locally and how much is exported.

Increase frequency in updating retail prices during this period in which fertilizer prices are increasing on a daily basis. Throughout the FTWGs, stakeholders mentioned that fertilizer invoices are now valid for only one day since the prices increase so frequently. Stakeholders requested that weekly prices be provided on the AFO website, as monthly average prices data come too late to inform decision-making. 

Next steps

While new data collection is not a central focus of the VIFFA program, some decision-making processes may require data that currently needs to be created. Therefore, simultaneous to developing dashboards using existing data, the VIFAA program will also work to identify and fill priority data gaps. VIFAA will respond to and learn from new methods to collect or analyze critical data on fertilizer price, use, availability, quality, or policy. For example, data investments may include innovations in calculating FUBC through improved arable land under production estimates and disaggregating national-level data. 

VIFAA will also explore different approaches and partnerships for filling these data gaps, including: 

• Supporting our partner AFO to collect new data or improve its methods for collecting existing data, for example, through FTWGs; and
• Facilitating data sharing agreements among the government (e.g., Memorandums of Understanding [MOUs] between ministries) and the private sector (e.g., contributing data to the warehouse to be anonymized/aggregated).

What will the Cashew-IN Platform Do?

The Cashew-IN platform is currently being developed by DG and will include data on the cashew sector in the five implementing countries: Côte d’Ivoire, Benin, Burkina Faso, Ghana, and Nigeria (referred to as the Cashew-IN countries below).

Some stakeholders interviewed after the launch of the prototype in December 2021 and during the various interactions (i.e., user feedback sessions, platform presentation, etc.) reiterated the crucial role of the Cashew–IN platform. According to responses given during the stakeholder interviews, some actors will use the platform to help to foster a better culture of statistical data production and dissemination and others will use it to raise awareness, guide, and influence decision-making of cashew stakeholders (such as researchers, producers, traders, and policy-makers) who are working within the production, processing, marketing, and consumption sectors.

Data and information generated from the platform can also support decisions of member states on policy issues as well as public and private actors to increase and secure investments in the sector.

What Does the Cashew-IN Platform Include?

Key informants and co-design workshop participants agreed on three themes to include in the Cashew-IN platform: production, processing, and trade. Participants also expressed specific and detailed data needs for each theme, which were similar across the five Cashew-IN countries with small country-specific differences:

• At the production level: participants articulated data needs around several themes including research studies, good agricultural practices, production costs, access to land, access to agro-processing supplies, and phytosanitary treatments;
• At the trade level: the data needs are the publication of international markets import-export statistics, information on national and international demand, processing countries customs statistics, and best practices from different cashew producing countries as well as current standards impacting the different cashew markets;
• At the processing level: in addition to locating the different processing units with the Cashew-IN countries, knowledge of almond grades, technological innovations and requirements to access international markets are needed, as expressed by workshop participants ; and
• Other identified needs include a national directory of service providers across the value chain, information related funding opportunities, organization of the cashew sector in each country of implementation, and women’s involvement in the sector.

The software development team included the following aspects in the design and the conception of the Cashew-IN platform:

• The platform is in English and French. Each country’s official language will be the default language, although users can switch languages at any time using the toggle available in the platform’s interface.
• The platform will accept indicator data from 2015 onwards for users to get familiar with the platform’s charts and graphs that display indicator progress over time.
• A data entry and/or update can be done directly from the user interface or by uploading Excel worksheets in the platform.
• All charts, graphs, tables, and maps will display the official source of the data being shown. This information will be embedded in all download functionalities.
• The platform supports two user modes: an authenticated mode for all users designated to enter and/or update data in the platform and a public user mode for general users to access the Cashew-IN public interface and associated content.
• Several user profiles have been configured for authenticated users to streamline the information flow while promoting and supporting national data ownership and appropriation. These user profiles include:
  • System administrator (SA): the user responsible for the overall platform settings and maintenance with read-only access to country data;
  • Country administrator (CA): the user responsible for country data management with full access rights to country data and country specific parameters and settings, including users management; and
  • Focal point (FP): the user responsible for data entry and/or update. Each FP will have to be officially designated by their responsible organization and will only be entitled to enter and/or update data pertaining to their organization.

Additional profiles and/or data management rules (e.g., data review and validation) can be configured as needed for each of the Cashew-IN countries.

Lessons Learned During the Data Ecosystem Assessment and Stakeholder Engagement

Throughout the implementation, the DG team learned several lessons related to the need for the Cashew-IN platform to be consistent with national policies and the importance of engaging national partners from the start of the project. 

More specifically, DG learned the importance of tailoring the Cashew-IN platform to meet the country’s national data disclosure framework and that the data included on the platform needs to remain the property of the original source. Implementing this approach helped to alleviate stakeholder concerns regarding the management and confidentiality of their data. 

DG also learned the importance of transparency, specifically we identified the need to ensure national stakeholders are included in the development of a new tool, beginning at the assessment phase of the project. Additionally, DG found that stakeholders engagement early in the project led to deepened buy-in and commitment to sharing data needed on the Cashew-IN platform. 

Next Steps

The technical development of the Cashew-IN platform is currently ongoing with the addition of further pages and features on trade and processing. One of the key activities in 2023 will be adding regional and country-specific data to the Cashew-IN platform. 

To learn more about how stakeholders will use the platform, check out our blogs: Voices of the Cashew Sector.

A Vulnerable Population: Why We Need Data on Adolescent Tobacco Use

African countries have some of the youngest populations in the world; for example, more than half of the population of Nigeria is under the age of 18.¹ Most of the available evidence captures data from 13- to 15-year-olds even though evidence from SSA shows that the age of smoking initiation among young people ranges from as young as 7 years old to about 16 years old.^2,3 In countries such as Kenya, among all psychoactive substances, tobacco is the most widely known and readily available and used by those aged 14 years and younger who are in primary school.⁴ For our three focus countries, the available data is either outdated (2012 for Nigeria⁵ and 2014 for Kenya⁶) or doesn’t exist (for DRC), making this data collection a priority for the African tobacco control community.

Additionally, adolescents are especially vulnerable to taking up tobacco use at a young age in some African countries because the tobacco industry aggressively markets to them: advertising near schools and playgrounds, providing free products, and selling youth-oriented flavors in novel tobacco products.  

Where are We?: What Data We Know is Missing (so Far)

The lack of data on adolescent tobacco use in African countries limits policymakers’ ability to make data-informed decisions on tobacco control policies. Through the implementation of our Tobacco Control Data Initiative (TCDI) program, DG has become increasingly aware of the limited data on adolescent tobacco use. Three specific types of data that we know to be missing are:

• Data about out-of-school adolescents and females: The Global Youth Tobacco Survey, a predominant source on youth-focused tobacco data, focuses on adolescents who are still in school. This means that data on out-of-school youth is missing and female adolescents tobacco use is likely underrepresented, since the adolescents who are most likely to begin smoking are those who are not enrolled in school and males in urban areas are most likely to be in school (see footnote 7);
• Data on certain age groups: Most of the available data is related to 13- to 15-year-olds. However, studies in SSA show that adolescent tobacco use begins as young as 7 through age 16 (see footnote 8). Therefore, the age of adolescents surveyed needs to be expanded in order to capture more comprehensive data; and
  
• Tobacco products included in surveys are limited: Cigarettes and smokeless tobacco products are the most commonly surveyed products, despite the rising prevalence of shisha and e-cigarettes. Policymakers will be able to create more robust tobacco control policies and better regulations once these products are included in surveys.

DaYTA: Helping Inform Policy on SSA’s Adolescents

In the initial stage of the DaYTA program, DG will work with stakeholders in Nigeria, Kenya, and the DRC to conduct a rapid assessment to confirm the data gaps and identify what areas need to be prioritized. The assessment findings will be validated in a series of DG-hosted workshops with stakeholders, during which research questions and methodologies for conducting the primary research will be finalized. 

After priorities are established, DG will conduct primary research and gather country-level data on tobacco use among adolescents aged 10- to 17-year-olds in all three countries. DG aims to capture data on the following: 

• Type, frequency, and quantity of tobacco use; 
• Use of novel tobacco products (e.g., electronic nicotine or non-nicotine delivery systems); 
• How tobacco products are accessed;
• Lifestyle factors associated with tobacco use (e.g., attending or not attending school, family history of tobacco use, etc.); and
• Any other data gaps identified as a result of the assessment.

Once this data is finalized, it will be integrated into the relevant TCDI Country Dashboards and disseminated to stakeholders. 

Stay tuned for more about DaYTA! In the meantime, learn about the TCDI program by following the links below.

Development Gateway : Une filiale d’IREX Venture’s (DG’s) et notre partenaire d’exécution, Women in Mining (WIM) Guinée, ont organisé un atelier de validation dans la région de Boké le 22 octobre 2022 pour présenter et confirmer les résultats d’une enquête  conduite par WIM Guinée  dans les sous-préfectures minières de Boké et Boffa en avril 2022. Les données  collectées visaient à évaluer l’impact des Fonds de Développement Economique Local (FODEL),¹  des fonds  constitués à partir des contributions financières des sociétés minières et distribués aux communautés touchées par l’activité minière. Les résultats de l’enquête ont révélé certains aspects qui pourraient être améliorés pour permettre aux femmes et aux associations de femmes des communautés minières de mieux capitaliser sur ces fonds et de mieux les utiliser pour soutenir leur développement local.

L’histoire de FODEL : Qu’est-ce qu’un fonds FODEL ? Et comment est-il utilisé ? 

Le  fonds FODEL est un type de prêt accordé par le gouvernement local aux communautés minières. L’administration locale distribue ces fonds après les avoir reçus du gouvernement national, qui les perçoit auprès des sociétés minières à titre de taxes et de redevances.

Les fonds FODEL sont répartis entre les préfectures minières en fonction du niveau d’impact que les communautés ont subi du fait des activités minières. Les fonds du FODEL sont également distribués à des groupes spécifiques au sein de ces communautés. Par exemple, 20 % des fonds reçus au niveau communautaire vont à des projets initiés par des femmes, des projets soutenant les femmes et les jeunes, des entreprises ou des groupes d’intérêt économique (GIE). Globalement, l’objectif des fonds FODEL est de soutenir des activités génératrices de revenus et de développement qui sont incluses dans les plans de développement des communautés.  

Afin de mieux soutenir les femmes dans le secteur minier, DG et WIM Guinée ont réalisé une évaluation des défis auxquels les femmes dans le secteur minier étaient confrontées avant, pendant et après avoir reçu des fonds du FODEL. L’évaluation a porté sur environ 700 femmes qui travaillent avec des associations de femmes dans les sous-préfectures de Boké et Boffa.

Ce que nous savons jusqu’à présent : L’atelier  d’évaluation et de validation

Sous la supervision de WIM Guinée, huit agents de collecte de données ont administré le questionnaire à un total de 11 communautés – cinq à Boké et six à Boffa.

Les résultats de l’évaluation ont permis de dresser le profil des femmes qui ont reçu des fonds du FODEL dans les deux localités. Ces femmes ont des diplômes d’études secondaires et la plupart d’entre elles s’adonnent à des activités de développement telles que le maraîchage, la pêche, la teinture, la saponification (c’est-à-dire la création de produits à base de savon ou d’alcool à partir de graisses et d’huiles) et la transformation de matières premières (par exemple, le beurre de karité, l’huile de palme, les cultures, etc.)   

Les résultats de l’évaluation ont révélé que :

• Les femmes estiment que les FODEL sont bénéfiques pour leurs associations. Cependant, les fonds sont insuffisants pour aider les femmes à atteindre leurs objectifs (par exemple, pour les associations de femmes travaillant à l’amélioration des performances agricoles, les fonds du FODEL sont trop faibles pour obtenir des intrants et des engrais appropriés, des équipements, ou pour sécuriser et protéger l’exploitation des parasites et des maladies) ;
• Les répondants à l’enquête ont éprouvé des difficultés à préparer des propositions viables pour recevoir des fonds du FODEL et ont eu du mal à gérer les fonds une fois qu’ils ont été accordés ; et
• Plus important encore, de nombreux bénéficiaires du FODEL ne savaient pas que les fonds du FODEL sont des prêts sans intérêt et non des subventions.

Malgré cette confusion, la plupart des associations ont pu rembourser un maximum de 70% du montant prêté. Elles ont attribué leur faible taux de remboursement à l’impact négatif des activités minières sur leurs sols et leurs eaux, aux prix élevés des engrais et des intrants agricoles, ainsi qu’au contrôle limité des parasites et des maladies au niveau de leurs exploitations agricoles

Lors de la réunion de validation, 30 femmes des communautés minières ont participé et confirmé les résultats de l’enquête ci-dessus. Les participantes ont également confirmé qu’elles n’ont pas reçu de documentation indiquant les modalités de remboursement des fonds du FODEL y compris  les délais de remboursement.

Au cours de la réunion, les participants ont également discuté de l’impact négatif qu’ils ont subi en raison de la production industrialisée – et de la main-d’œuvre et des produits moins chers qui en découlent – qui a supplanté leur méthode de production locale et traditionnelle. Par exemple, les femmes locales qui teignent des tissus ont constaté que la demande pour leurs produits se déplace vers la demande de tissus moins chers qui sont teints industriellement par des groupes qui sont venus dans la région avec les compagnies minières internationales.

Prochaines étapes

Parallèlement à la publication prochaine du site web rassemblant toutes les données appropriées recueillies par DG et WIM Guinée, nous publierons un rapport présentant des recommandations sur nos diverses conclusions tout au long de ce projet. Restez à l’écoute !

Pour l’instant, les leçons tirées de l’évaluation de l’utilisation des fonds FODEL sont les suivantes :

• Les administrateurs des fonds FODEL doivent créer et/ou réviser les efforts de communication avec les bénéficiaires du FODEL notamment en ce qui concerne le remboursement des échéances et le calendrier y afférent ;
• Il serait très bénéfique, si possible, d’augmenter le montant des fonds accordés aux bénéficiaires du FODEL ;
• La réglementation des biens et services locaux afin de promouvoir la production locale conformément au code minier peut soutenir davantage l’association des femmes ; et
• Il est nécessaire de renforcer les capacités des femmes locales en matière de gestion de projet.  

Development Gateway: An IREX Venture’s (DG’s) and our implementing partner, Women in Mining (WIM) Guinea, held a validation meeting in the Boké region of Guinea on October 22, 2022 to present and confirm the findings of a data collection initiative that WIM Guinea conducted in the country’s Boké and Boffa mining subprefectures in April 2022. The data was collected in order to assess the impact of the Fonds de Développement Economique Local (FODEL)¹ or, in English, local economic development funds. These funds are created from mining companies’ financial contributions and distributed to communities impacted by the mining activity. The results of the survey revealed certain aspects that could be improved to further enable women and women’s associations in mining communities to capitalize on these funds and better use them to support local development.

A FODEL Tale: What is a FODEL fund? And How is it Used?  

A FODEL fund is a type of loan provided by the local government to mining communities. The local government distributes these funds after receiving them from the national government, who collects them from the mining companies as part of the companies’ taxes. 

The FODEL funds are distributed among the mining prefectures in accordance with the level of impact the communities have experienced as a result of the mining activities. FODEL funds are also distributed to specific groups within these communities. For example, 20% of the funds received at the community level go to women-initiated projects, projects supporting women and youth, enterprises, or economic interest groups (EIG). Overall, the aim of FODEL funds is to support income-generating and development activities that are included in the communities’ development plans.  

In order to better support women in mining, DG and WIM Guinea conducted an assessment of the challenges women in mining faced before, during, and after receiving FODEL funds. The assessment surveyed about 700 women who worked with women’s associations in Boké and Boffa subprefectures. 

What We Know so Far: The Assessment & Validation Meeting

With WIM Guinea’s supervision, eight data collection agents administered the questionnaire to a total of 11 communities—five in Boké and six in Boffa. 

The results from the assessment offered a profile of the women who received FODEL funds in both locations. These women have high school diplomas and most engage in such development activities as vegetable gardening, fishery, dyeing, saponification (i.e., creating soap or alcohol products from fats and oils), and processing of raw materials (e.g., shea butter, palm oil, crops, etc.).   

The assessment findings revealed that:

• Women believe that FODEL are beneficial to their associations. However, the funds were insufficient to help the women meet their objectives (e.g., for women’s associations working at improving agricultural performance, FODEL funds are too low to get proper inputs and fertilizer, equipment, or to secure and protect the farm from pests and diseases); 
• The survey respondents experienced challenges in preparing sustainable proposals to receive FODEL funds and had difficulty managing funds once they were given; and 
• Most significantly—many FODEL recipients weren’t aware that the FODEL funds are loans with no interest and not grants. 
  • Despite this confusion, most associations were able to reimburse a maximum of 70% of the lended amount. They attributed their reimbursement rate to the negative impact of mining activities on their soils and waters, high prices of fertilizers and agricultural inputs, and limited pest and disease controls. 

In the validation meeting, 30 women from the mining communities participated and confirmed the above survey findings. Participants also confirmed that they did not receive documentation stating that the FODEL funds they received are loans that must be reimbursed. They received no information about the expectation or timeline for paying the FODEL funds back. 

During the meeting, participants also discussed the negative impact they have experienced as a result of industrialized production—and the subsequent cheaper labor and products—that have displaced their localized, traditional method of production. For example, local women who dye fabrics reported finding that demand for their products is shifting to demand for the less expensive fabrics that are industrially dyed by groups that have come to the area with the international mining companies.

Next Steps

Alongside the upcoming release of the website collating all appropriate data gathered by DG and WIM Guinea, we will release a report offering recommendations on our various findings throughout this project. Stay tuned! 

For now, lessons learned from the assessment of FODEL funds use include:

• Administrators of the FODEL funds need to create and/or revise communication efforts with FODEL recipients to ensure that the nature of the loan is clear—namely, that FODEL funds are loans and therefore, must be repaid and the timeline requirements for this repayment;
• Increasing the amount of funds given to FODEL recipients would be highly beneficial, if possible; 
• Regulating local goods and services to promote local production in accordance with the mining code can further support women’s association; and
• There’s a need to strengthen local women’s capacities in project management.  

How do you expect to use the TASAI-VISTA Dashboard?

“[The TASAI-VISTA Dashboard] will avail us to better and prompt information when we need it. And it means the work is there [for] comparison between countries. And it helps you to also have a link that you can share with your seniors—those above you—to say ok this is what I’m talking about…In Africa, seeing is believing, and it’s what we see that moves us.

So if you are talking to a very senior colleague about the report or the outcome of this study  of TASAI and you’re talking physically, they may not really believe you. Just send them the link and say, ‘Check the link and you’ll see what I’m saying.’ Then they can see for themselves.” 

In your work, which indicators or data do you find most useful to use? 

“In the previous results of TASAI, some data particularly [regarding] the number of breeders, for example, has helped in actually speaking to policy-makers that we need more breeders. It has helped to also speak to the donors to sponsor more people to start breeding, because we have a little number of breeders. And also, the number of companies—you know—the rate at which companies are getting breeders on their payroll, we were able to show that. […] The TASAI-VISTA portal will be able to show this gap.”

What kind of decisions are you making based on this data?

“We make policy decisions, particularly in dealing with new companies. One example is the aspect of counterfeiting (the faking of seeds). The TASAI report brought these out clearly some years back, and it was one of what helped push for donor intervention—to say, we need to stem or stop the nefarious demand for this for the farmers, and then to the introduction of the SEEDCODEX.

There are other things that the TASAI resource has brought out before. I mentioned the Garden Variety Protection—it’s one clear gap  in our seeds piece, and because of the report, we’ve been able to go to the government and say, ‘Yes, we need support.’”

How can the TASAI-VISTA Dashboard help you in your work, especially analysis and decision-making?

“For me, I’m very excited to start playing with the Dashboard. […]  When you get familiar with [the Dashboard] many things you cannot imagine can come to the fore. So, I see more flexibility. I see more promise in everyone getting information much easier than it was with the pdf version. So, [we’re] just waiting for the launch, so we can hit the ground running.” 

The Zambia Website 

Together, partners co-designed a publicly available website (zambia.tobaccocontroldata.org) that aims to address key decision-making needs. The website equips stakeholders in government, civil society, academia, and the general public with reliable and up-to-date evidence to promote tobacco control and public health. It draws on both primary and secondary data sources and presents tobacco control information in user-friendly formats such as graphs, infographics, myths and facts, and success stories. The website will feature five themes: tobacco prevalence, tobacco harm, illicit trade, taxation, and industry interference. The website will be updated with new information as this becomes available over the course of the program.

The Development Process

Before creating the TCDI Zambia website, the TCDI team assessed the existing data and stakeholder needs through hour-long interviews with key members of the tobacco control community. The learnings from the assessment were validated with stakeholders during a workshop in February 2022  before technical development proceeded. The website was created through an agile, co-design process in close consultation with key tobacco control stakeholders in Zambia, including Zambia’s Ministry of Health. (Find the full list of our stakeholders and partners here.) Initial mockups and website designs were shared back with stakeholders for their input and suggestions. As a final step before launching the site, user feedback sessions were led in November 2022.