ACA Facilitates Regional Cooperation Platform in East Africa

On 31 July 2012, at a Press and Stakeholder Conference in Nairobi, Kenya, the national cashew associations of Kenya, Tanzania, and Mozambique set up a cooperation framework that will promote cashew business in the region. The Chair of the Nut Processors Association of Kenya (NutPAK), Muhara Johnson, Cashewnut Processor Association of Tanzania Chairman Idrisa Kilangi, ACA MD Christian Dahm and former ACA President and AICAJU representative Carlos Costa (for Yunus Gafar) signed a Memorandum of Understanding establishing the platform.

Signatories of the Regional MOU included ACA, NUTPAK, AICAJU, and the Cashewnut Processor Association of Tanzania

The cooperation between the four organizations will focus on i) improving the regulatory and business environment for the cashew sector in the region ii) facilitating regional trade iii) promoting investment into the cashew sector iv) increasing yield and quality of the crop and v) promoting food safety, quality and sustainability standards. Implementation of the MOU will be overseen from a joint regional office for eastern and southern Africa, to be run under the auspices of the ACA. The region is notable in the cashew industry for its processing capacity – processing about 30% of cashew grown in the region, compared to West Africa which processes only 5% of its crop.