(Ecofin Agency) - In Senegal, the government invested CFA30.2 billion in the 2016-17 groundnut campaign. This was revealed by the minister of agriculture and rural equipment, Papa Abdoulaye Seck.

In regards to the profits that the investment will bring about, the official said so far 417,000 tons of the crop have been harvested. Of this volume, 188,000 tons have been exported while 128,000 tons were sold to peanut oil producers. The latter represents an increase of 89,000 tons compared to the previous season (39,000 tons).

Let’s recall that the current marketing season opened on December 1, 2016, and is to close on April 30, 2017. According to data from the U.S. Department for Agriculture (USDA), Senegal exported during the 2015-16 season 340,000 tons of peanut, mainly to China and Vietnam.

This year, the country plans to produce 1.14 million tons of the crop, USDA reports.

Espoir Olodo