Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Charlie McConalogue will travel to two countries in Africa this week as part of a trade mission to the west region of the continent.
The visit to Nigeria and Senegal will be focussed on developing political and economic relationships in the region, according to the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine.
The trade mission will include representatives of Bord Bia, Enterprise Ireland, Sustainable Foods Systems Ireland and Irish embassies in both countries. 15 Irish companies are also participating on the visit.
The trade mission will include events in the Nigerian cities of Abuja and Lagos (the former city being the county’s capital) and the Senegalese capital Dakar.
These events will include government to government meetings; engagement with the United Nations (UN) Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and World Food Programme; and Enterprise Ireland engagements with customers for Irish agri-food and agri-technology.
Commenting on the trade mission, Minister McConalogue said: “Ireland has a strong economic relationship with west Africa and I look forward to exploring the opportunities to enhance this relationship where demand for affordable high quality food and drinks is growing.
“Ireland’s high-quality, safe, sustainably-produced food, seafood and beverages are well placed to meet this demand and grow the sector’s footprint in this region,” Minister McConalogue added.
“I am particularly looking forward to attending the launch of an Ireland-Nigeria trade network in Lagos this week and supporting Irish companies creating new economic ties in the region.”
He also said that that trade mission is also “about enhancing our cooperation on global challenges”, namely food security, the climate, and environmental adaption.
“While the scale, economies and agro-ecologies of Ireland and countries in the region are different, I believe we share the common aim of improving the contribution of the agri-food sector to our national economies and building sustainable food systems,” the minister said.
“The engagement with government, UN agencies, and private sector stakeholders during this trade mission allows us to share Ireland’s experience of developing a sustainable agriculture sector; to underline Ireland’s commitment to supporting the development of sustainable food systems; and to identify further opportunities for collaboration,” he added.
Bord Bia CEO Jim O’Toole said that Ireland is building a strong trade relationship in agri-food with the west African region.
“The value of Irish food and drink exports [to west Africa] reached €1.1 billion in 2022, comprising dairy, drinks, meat, and seafood exports. Since 2018, Irish food and drink exports to west Africa have increased from €227 million to €578 million in 2022,” O’Toole said.
He added: “Given that Nigeria and Senegal have a combined population of 229 million people, trade missions such as this provide a means to raise the profile of Irish food and drink to provide opportunities for west African countries to increase their business with Ireland.”