West and Central Africa – Coastal and Humid Regions

WorldVeg operates a regional center for the Coastal and Humid Regions of West and Central Africa since 2017 in Cotonou, Benin, at the IITA-managed campus of Calavi. 

The vegetable sector in sub-Saharan Africa is severely underdeveloped and vegetable consumption is extremely low. In Africa’s diverse agroclimatic zones, there is enormous potential for smallholder farmers to produce numerous vegetable crops for domestic and international markets.

Vegetables are often the most important source of cash income for smallholder farmers, and indigenous vegetables provide an important source of nutrition, particularly for poor people. New varieties and improved management methods have been developed and extended through training programs for research and extension workers and smallholder farmers.