Browse Data and Analysis

Ghana is in economic recovery mode following the double hits of the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak of 2020 and the macroeconomic crisis of 2022. The Ghanaian hotel-restaurant-institutional (HRI) sector is evidencing a promising upward trajectory.

Turkiye’s cotton production in marketing year (MY) 2024/25 is forecast to increase to 865,000 metric tons (MT; 3.97 million bales), since farmers planted cotton on larger area in response to temporary cotton price hikes during the planting season and because of better yields compared to last MY due to better weather conditions.

MY2024/25 cotton area harvested for Senegal, Mali, and Burkina Faso is estimated to decrease 17 percent to 981,000 HA. This is mainly due to decreased planted area resulting from a late rainy season in all three countries, as well as civil conflict in Burkina Faso.

Import permits for genetically engineered (GE) corn from the United States are once again issued by South Africa. After a mid-summer drought that caused a 22 percent drop in production, South Africa needs to import corn to supplement domestic production.

On July 26, 2016, Côte d’Ivoire enacted its national Biosafety Law No. 2016-553. This law establishes the groundwork for managing genetically engineered (GE) products.

This is a regional report on West Africa that primarily covers Senegal, Burkina Faso, and Mali, but also provides brief overviews in certain sections for Niger, The Gambia, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, and Mauritania.

Post received confirmation on United States genetically engineered (GE) soybean eligibility to enter South Africa. After a mid-summer drought, South Africa needs corn and soybean imports to complement local production. South Africa allows for the importation of synchronized GE event approvals from an exporting country.

Türkiye’s Biosafety Law continues to threaten imports and imposes a heavy financial burden on the country’s agri-food sector. The number of approved of genetically engineered (GE) events remains arbitrarily fixed at 36 and only includes traits in corn and soy for feed use. There are no approvals for food use due to public sensitivities about the technology.

Turkiye’s commercial apple production in MY 2024/25 is forecast to fall to a five-year low because of unusually dry and warmer weather conditions, which growers say is caused by climate change.

Amid economic headwinds, Turkiye's retail food sector continues to grow, fueled by a young population of 85 million and a rising middle class. The sector is predominantly made up of domestic discount chains, and most of the food on store shelves is produced locally.

In January 2024, Nigeria became the second country in Africa to approve the commercial release of four biotech (TELA) maize varieties.

Mozambique has begun to draft a Biotechnology Law that will allow GE commercialization. The country planted its first genetically engineered (GE) corn trial in 2017 to test drought and pest resistance.