In Togo, various groups of fishmongers and market gardeners in the Lacs 1 and Lacs 3 municipalities recently received equipment to enhance their operations. The support was provided by the World Bank through the West Africa Coastal Resilience Investment Project (WACA ResIP), which aims to assist riverside communities along the Gbodjomé–Sanvi-Kondji coastal area, particularly vulnerable to the impacts of marine erosion.
A total of thirty fishmonger groups and forty market gardener groups benefited from the donation, valued at 26 million CFA francs. The distributed equipment included electric pressure sprayers with rechargeable batteries, protective suits for market gardeners, coolers, freezers, display stands, gloves, headgear, and bibs.
According to Adou Rahim Assimiou, the project’s national coordinator, the grant aims to support coastal communities whose livelihoods – primarily based on fishing, fish trading, and market gardening – are affected by coastal protection efforts. The goal is to strengthen their resilience by improving production conditions in an environment altered by the construction of protective infrastructure.
This support, part of a WACA ResIP social sub-project funded by the World Bank to the tune of 1.5 billion CFA francs, includes additional components. In the coming months, the project plans to provide outboard motorized canoes, fishing nets, and life jackets for local fishermen.
The project will also construct community facilities such as latrines, boreholes, and Chorkor-type ovens. All of these initiatives will be complemented by training sessions, some of which began in February 2025 for market gardeners in the Lacs 1 and Lacs 3 municipalities.