USAID Office of Food for Peace Burkina Faso Bellmon ... - CiteSeerX

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5. MONETIZATION ANALYSIS
This Bellmon Analysis evaluates the impact of importing various Title II commodities on local
production and marketing in Burkina Faso including rice, edible oil, wheat/wheat flour and nonfat
dried milk.
Parboiled rice is recommended for monetization because it is less than 10 percent of estimated
import volumes; has been previously monetized; monetization sales occur via auctions and in a
competitive environment; and domestic rice production is not enough to meet domestic demand
for rice, which is observed in the inverse relationship between production volumes and
commercial import volumes. Additionally, parboiled rice takes less fuel to prepare, making it less
expensive to cook. There is also a demand for rice in urban and peri-urban areas.
While parboiled rice from the United States and Thailand are substitutes for one another among
“high-end” urban consumers, this marketing chain is distinct from that of imported 60 –
100percent broken rice, which serves as a substitute for locally-produced rice for the “relatively
poor” in urban areas. Rice is not commonly consumed beyond the urban and peri-urban areas
of Ouagadougou and Bobo-Dioulasso. Importers in Africa commonly buy broken parboiled rice
from Thailand for the low-end market.
Among the urban poor receiving WFP vouchers in Ouagadougou, a preference for rice over
maize was observed. A visit to rural producers in Dakiri, in Gnagna Province, revealed that
producers participating in the Gates-funded rice initiative prefer to grow rice as a cash crop over
traditional grain subsistence crops.
5.1 RICE
5.1.1 Supply Summary
Milled and broken rice are Burkina Faso’s primary rice imports. Rice exports are negligible (less
than 1,500 MT per year). U.S.-imported parboiled rice is generally preferred to Asian imports;
parboiled rice is fluffy and full, and used for special occasions, while Asian (Chinese and Thai)
long-grain rices are regarded as inferior in quality. The June 2009 Ouagadougou prices for
imported rice included 50 kg bags of Chinese and Thai long grain broken each retailing between
14,000 CFA ($30.43) to 19,000 CFA ($41.30); with 50 kg bags of U.S. parboiled rice retailing at
23,000 CFA ($50.00). The urban population, including restaurants and hotels, is the main
consumer of rice, with rural populations preferring sorghum for consumption.
14 BEST ANALYSIS – BURKINA FASO