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Impact Of Agricultural Market Reforms On Smallholder Farmers In ...

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anking system has been restored to health and opened up private-sector competition. Between<br />

1991 and 1996, more than 100 state-owned enterprises (most of them making losses) were<br />

privatized, including the national cement company, an abbatoir, a textile company, the national<br />

brewing and bottling company, and the tobacco and cigarette industry.<br />

<strong>In</strong> the agricultural sector, reforms were implemented in food marketing, cotton marketing, input<br />

distribution, rural finance, and agricultural services. Each is described briefly below.<br />

Liberalization of food marketing <strong>In</strong> 1990, regulations requiring that agricultural traders<br />

register, pay annual fees, and obtain a license from the Ministry of Commerce and <strong>In</strong>dustry. The<br />

new law (No. 90-005 of May 15 1990) stipulates that anyone can become a trader in agricultural<br />

commodities without prior approval from the government.<br />

The ONC was relieved of its goal of controlling 25 percent of the food distribution in Benin and<br />

restructured as the <strong>Of</strong>fice Nationale d’Appui à la Sécurité Alimentaire (ONASA). ONASA is<br />

responsible for collecting and disseminating information on food security. For this purpose, it<br />

publishes a monthly newsletter with information on weather, prices, production forecasts, and<br />

international trade. <strong>In</strong> addition, ONASA is responsible for managing a strategic food security buffer<br />

stock, although funding constraints have made this a very limited activity.<br />

<strong>In</strong> addition, the Centres d’Action Régionale pour le Développement Rural (CARDERs) have been<br />

relieved of all commercial activity. Finally, the Direction of Price and Quality Control has been<br />

reoriented toward the establishment of norms and standards, the prices of food crops being<br />

completely deregulated.<br />

<strong>Reforms</strong> in cotton marketing The implementation of the liberalization of the cotton<br />

sector has been quite slow. SONAPRA continues to maintain a monopoly on the collection and<br />

marketing of cotton. The cotton ginning sector is the only portion of the cotton channel to be<br />

opened up. <strong>In</strong> addition to the six state-owned cotton gins managed by SONAPRA, there are now<br />

six new gins owned by private enterprises. SONAPRA allocates a portion of the seed cotton from<br />

the groupements villageois to these gins, but then takes control of the processed cotton and sells it<br />

on the world market. <strong>On</strong>e private cotton gin, the Societé Aiglon, has been given provisional<br />

authority to market their cotton directly.<br />

11

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