Following the regional training workshop for its national field Focal Points on the use of the Road Fluidity application, WACTAF conducted a field mission in Benin, with visits to the Sèmè – Kraké border post and the Dantokpa International Market. The mission also included a delegation from its technical and financial partner, AGRA, as part of the implementation of the project aimed at strengthening the participation of women and youth in cross-border trade.
Through this field-based approach, WACTAF reaffirmed its commitment to gaining a deeper understanding of the challenges faced by cross-border traders along major regional trade corridors, with a view to developing practical solutions that enhance trade facilitation and promote the free movement of agricultural, forestry, livestock, and fisheries products.
At the Sèmè-Kraké border post, the team met with women engaged in the pineapple trade, who are key drivers of the local and regional economy. The discussions identified several constraints that continue to hinder their business activities, including administrative bottlenecks, non-tariff barriers, and delays in border clearance procedures. The traders also highlighted a major structural challenge : access to foreign currency.
Located at the interface between Benin, where the CFA franc is used, and Nigeria, where transactions are conducted in naira, the Sèmè-Kraké border post faces challenges related to exchange rate fluctuations and limited access to foreign currency. These constraints directly affect traders’ competitiveness, increase transaction costs, and slow down cross-border trade between the two countries.
The mission then continued to the Dantokpa International Market, Benin’s commercial hub and one of West Africa’s most important trading centres. The market handles significant volumes of food, agricultural, forestry, livestock, and fisheries products, making it a strategic location for assessing the realities of cross-border trade and evaluating the impact of trade facilitation initiatives implemented by WACTAF and its partners.
