Attiéke is becoming more and more popular and is very present in the food habits of the Burkinabe population. Nowadays, 75% of Burkinabè consume at least one dish of attiéké per day. This explains the potential of this product on the market.
It should be remembered that attiéké is made from cassava. However, cassava production in Burkina Faso is dominated by smallholder farmers who are in groups that are not well structured.
As part of the NANALIM-2SCALE partnership, one of the first objectives was to organize this value chain through the establishment of agribusiness clusters involving farmers, processors and other actors and services in the main production basins.
In light of NANALIM's ambition to produce dehydrated attiéké on a large scale and increase direct sales of the product to low-income consumer markets (BoP), between 2019 and 2020, NANALIM's production of dry attiéké increased from 10 tons to 106 tons, and that of fresh attiéké from 85 tons to 180 tons. This result is partly due to the reorganization of the sector, but also to the development of a sustainable supply chain.With ever-increasing consumer demand, the company has undertaken an initiative to expand its distribution network in all regions of Burkina Faso, with the support of its partner 2SCALE.
Kaya, Dori, and Ziniaré are the three main cities targeted during this first campaign to promote and expand the NANALIM network. With the objective being to make cassava-based products, especially dehydrated attiéké, accessible to all populations, including low-income consumers, it proved necessary to multiply the number of sales outlets in the different zones.
To ensure the success of this first expansion campaign, more than 80 potential distributors have been identified in the three targeted areas and a vast communication campaign on local radios has been organized in order to make the product known as well as the current points of sale in these different cities.
Following the meeting and the tasting session with the identified distributors, about 40 distributors have accepted the offer to date, who continue to place orders directly to NANALIM. The orders are made every month for the dehydrated attiéké, and every week for the fresh attiéké which is more known and whose demand is, consequently, stronger in these localities and the surrounding villages.
Nowadays, Nanalim has been able to expand its areas of intervention and reach new market segments.
During the campaign, many young girls and boys were involved in street vending and the promotion of dehydrated attiéké in the three target cities. Indeed, the training organized beforehand by 2SCALE on entrepreneurship and leadership, allowed to review with the young girls and boys the professional and life skills that are important in the development of their activity and in their inclusion in the cassava value chain; to share with them the business opportunities identified with Nanalim and to measure their interest in seizing them.
A dozen young people in these and other cities have seized the opportunity to develop their own cassava business. In Bobo Dioulasso, for example, Mr. Barry, after completing the training, trained thirty young people with whom he sells attiéké in the west of the country.
Setting up points of sale in all the accessible regions of the country is the ambition that our champion has in her conquest towards the new markets. This current distribution strategy aims to position Nanalim as a processing company that supplies wholesalers, who in turn supply semi-wholesalers and retailers. It is also part of the inclusion of small and medium-sized companies in the processing and the distribution of products and the increase of their income.
In the near future, other large regions of Burkina Faso such as the Centre West, the Boucle of Mouhoun, the Centre South, the Centre East and the South West will see their points of sale open.
Stay tuned for more on Nanalim’s expansion!
