Results
- Domestic cashew processing capacity increased from 68,515 tons in 2015 to 350,000 tons in 2024
- Over 18,321 jobs created, of which 66% are held by women
- Development of three agro-industrial zones dedicated to cashew processing
- Construction and rehabilitation of 1800km of access roads
- Additional 12,000 direct jobs by the end of 2025 with the operationalization of three agro-industrial zones
The Challenge
Cashews are Côte d’Ivoire’s second most important export commodity after cocoa, and a crucial source of cash for smallholders and processors in the poorer north of the country. From 380,000 tons in 2010, the production of Raw Cashew Nuts (RCN) increased to 1.2 million tons in 2023, 40 percent of the world’s cashew supply, with exports estimated at over $800 million.
The volume of RCN processed locally has seen a substantial increase from 68,515 tons in 2018 to more than 345,000 tons in 2024. But the government's stated ambition is to locally process more than 50 percent of the RCN by 2030. This requires upgrading or building modern processing facilities, and bridging a lack of access to working capital. In addition, poorly maintained plantations, a lack of quality stock and inputs, weak extension services, and losses in post-harvest handling and storage result in low yields and quality. Côte d’Ivoire’s cashew subsector has strong potential for growth and job creation if the value chain, and especially local processing, can improve.
WBG Approach
The Cashew Value Chain Competitiveness Project is aligned with the IFC-World Bank agribusiness strategy of reforming sector governance and improving access to markets, technology, and training for smallholder farmers. The project emphasizes job creation in the cashew processing industry, with a particular focus on jobs for women. By supporting targeted incentives, enhancing cashew productivity, investing in processing infrastructure, and facilitating access to finance, it has successfully attracted private investment into the cashew value chain.
The project supports national organizations overseeing the value chain in bringing together stakeholders, providing training in quality control and marketing, and facilitating the legal registration and development of cooperatives. It is helping assess the regulatory costs for selling, buying, and trading cashew products, and recommends improvements, and scaling up an IT platform pioneered by IFC to accelerate the distribution of environmental permit applications to cashew processors. The project continues to support processors in investing in the necessary waste processing technologies and the production of Cashew Nut Shell Liquid (CNSL), a valuable byproduct.
The project has supported the construction of a specialized lab for the improvement of the cashew crop and supports local nurseries in growing seedlings for smallholders. It has rehabilitated about 1,600 kilometers of feeder roads to improve smallholders’ access to markets. In partnership with the private sector, the project is helping build and equip three cashew processing zones and train their staff, to demonstrate processing innovations and best practices. Eight satellite hubs will enable farmers in outlying districts to link with processors more easily. IFC will continue to engage private investors to finance cashew storage and processing facilities, either on their own or in public-private partnerships.
Overall investments in the sector have helped increase domestic processing capacity, generating over 18,321 jobs, of which 66 percent are held by women. Of these, 17,213 are in cashew processing, 958 in farm inputs and service delivery, and 150 in supply chain logistics. The project also aims to create 12,000 additional direct jobs by the end of 2025 with the operationalization of the three agro-industrial zones dedicated to cashew processing in Bondoukou, Korhogo and Seguela in the North.
