Effects of the CFA franc devaluation on urban food consumption in West Africa: overview and cross-country comparisons

摘要

The paper summarizes research and policy questions, and research methods and findings of four case studies of the impacts of the 1994 CFA franc devaluation in West Africa on urban food consumption. The case studies are household surveys from BurkinaFaso, Cote d'Ivoire, Mali, and Senegal. The research showed, in general, that, comparing food consumption patterns after the devaluation with those before: (1) total cereal intake fell, especially for the poorest; (2) the intake of imported rice held steady; (3) the intake of domestic coarse grains (millet, maize, sorghum) did not rise, except for an increase in maize intake in Burkina Faso; (4) only in Mali was there a significant shift to domestic rice; (5) imported wheat intake dropped; (6) roots, tuber and plantain consumption did not receive a boost; (7) there was a de-diversification of the diet, especially for the poorest, with reductions in meat, edible oils, and vegetables/fruit, as well as imported milk; there was, however, some increase indomestic oils/butters consumption; (8) there was some 'individualization' of consumption patterns with increased importance of the informal restaurant sector. The most striking results in the context of the policy debate are that cereal intake fell, andthat the (expected) shift from imported rice to local coarse grains did not occur. The lack of such a shift is explainable in terms of the lacklustre supply response of the coarse grain sectors, and the resilience of rice demand based on its convenienceof processing and preparation for the urban consumer. These results together imply: the economics and technology of agro-processing of coarse grains need to return to the centre of the cereals debate in West Africa; emphasis on the capacity of local coarse grain and domestic rice producers to respond to incentives needs to be increased.