The chairman and CEO of the Office Chérifien des Phosphates (OCP) group, Mostafa Terrab, gave a statement to the Financial Times (FT), in which he highlighted Africa’s potential for global food security.
In this regard, he said that Africa has 60% of the world’s unused arable land, which attests to its key role in food security.
The FT daily pointed out that the Moroccan group OCP has donated more than 500,000 tonnes to small farmers in sub-Saharan countries, either free of charge or at reduced prices, against a backdrop of global fears about food security due to the war in Ukraine.
It was stated that OCP will devote a significant part of its production to Africa, knowing that it already supplies 70% of fertilizers in Africa. The Moroccan group plans to sell 4 million tonnes on the continent in 2023 as part of a program that even allows for the training of farmers.
The group will contribute to agricultural production in Africa by developing customized fertilizers adapted to African soils. This strategy has allowed the company to increase yields while reducing prices, Terrab added.
With these customized products, OCP had already increased yields for farmers in Ethiopia, Tanzania, and Ghana.
Terrab also told the newspaper that in Africa, there are great opportunities to ensure self-sufficiency.