The Role of Traditional Food Processing Technologies In National Development: the West African Experience

The capacity to preserve food is directly related to the level of technological development. The slow progress in upgrading traditional food processing and preservation techniques in West Africa contributes to food and nutrition insecurity in the sub-region. Simple, low-cost, traditional food processing techniques are the bedrock of small-scale food processing enterprises that are crucial to rural development in West Africa. By generating employment opportunities in the rural areas, smallscale food industries reduce rural-urban migration and the associated social problems. They are vital to reducing post-harvest food losses and increasing food availability. Regrettably, rapid growth and development of small-scale food industries in West Africa are hampered by adoption of inefficient and inappropriate technologies, poor management, inadequate working capital, limited access to banks and other financial institutions, high interest rates and low profit margins. While a lot still needs to be done, some successes have been achieved in upgrading traditional West African food processing technologies including the mechanization of gari (fermented cassava meal) processing, the production of instant yam flour or flakes, the production of soy-ogi (a protein-enriched complementary food), the industrial production of dawadawa (a fermented condiment) and the upgrading of the kilishi (a traditional roasted dry meat product) process and the traditional West African cheese-making process.