GIN C2033 3.Pdf

S Co'i« — 10 SEP. >973 f.sempL-^— Gallo Kode Kifaya OU IBS3EÄ PALM OIL PROJECT INSTALLATIONS Yambéring Gaoual OTouba Labë 'apaya Télimélé Pt. Victoria Doiaba Boffa Souguéta Ouassou Kobba CONAKRY Forecarioh. LEGEND (T) Kagbele Pilot Plabt iPamelap (D 'Kanderiah Plant (D Yogoya Plant (4) Bentimódiah Plant DRAFT PALM OIL EXTRACTION PROJECT REPUBLIC OF GUINEA Prepared for the AGENCY FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT Checchi and Company 815 Connecticut Avenue, N. W. Washington, D„ C„ 20006 December, 1966 Checchi and Company BIS CONNECTICUT AVE., N.W. WASHINGTON, D.C.20005 TELEPHONE CABLE AOORE55 ESQ- B G 3 □ "CHECCHI" December 2, 1966 Mr. Murray Gray, Chief Contracts Staff Bureau for Africa Agency for International Development Department of State Washington, D. C. Dear Mr. Gray: We herewith transmit five copies of the draft final report on the Guinea Edible Oil project. This document has not yet been finally reviewed by a company principal, therefore, it must be considered a draft. This report will be supplemented by a section by Mr. Manly, who, as you have been informed, is seriously ill. We will appreciate your prompt attention to this report so that we may prepare and submit the final version as soon as possible. Sincerely yours Thomas H. Lamoureux Encs. Checchi and Company B I 5 CO N N ECTI CUT AVE., N. W. washington, 0.0.20006 TELEPHONE CABLE AOORE55 "CHECCHI" December 2, 1966 Mr. Murray Gray, Chief Contracts Staff Bureau for Africa Agency for International Development Department of State Washington, D. C. Dear Mr. Gray: We herewith transmit five copies of the draft final report on the Guinea Edible Oil project. This document has not yet been finally reviewed by a company principal, therefore, it must be considered a draft. This report will be supplemented by a section by Mr. Manly, who, as you have been informed, is seriously ill. We will appreciate your prompt attention to this report so that we may prepare and submit the final version as soon as possible. Sincerely yours Thomas H. Lamoureux Encs. CONTENTS I THE PRELIMINARY STUDY . I- 1 II THE PROJECT AGREEMENTS II- 1 III CONCLUSIONS III- 1 A. Has the Project a Future in Guinea? Ill- 2 B. Is the Guinean Experience Useful Elsewhere? . • III- 8 IV RECOMMENDATIONS IV- 1 A. Recommendations to the Government of Guinea. IV- 1 B. Recommendations to AID ........... IV- 3 V THE FULFILLMENT OF ADMINISTRATIVE OBLIGATIONS V- 1 A„ GOG Project Administration 1963-1964 . V- 1 1964-1965 V- 5 1965-1966. ..... V-18 B. Local Currency Financing V-36 C. Technical Assistance V-40 VI THE TECHNICAL AND ECONOMIC ASPECTS ..... VI- 1 A. The Installation and Operation of Plants ..... VI- 1 B. Improvements in Technique VI-11 1. Palm Fruit Processing . VI-14 a. Training. VI-14 b. Improvement of plant performance VI-16 c. Bunch processing VI-18 d. Loose fruit processing . VI-20 2. Kernel Recovery VI-23 a. Nut Separation VI-24 b. Kernel recovery ............ VI-25 VII PLANT OPERATIONS VII- 1 A. Pilot Operations --1964 VII- 1 B. Plant Operations -- 1965 . VII-24 C. Plant Operations --1966 . VII-34 VIII PROBLEMS VIII- 1 A. Problems of USAID/G Logistic Support . , . VIII- 1 B. Problems with the Government of Guinea (GOG) . VIII-12 C. Problems of Peace Corps Participation VIII-23 APPENDICES A. The Social, Administrative, and Political Structure in Guinea . .. o ............. A- 1 B. The Cooperative Operation B- 1 C. The Exchange of Commodities for Fruit . C- 1 D. Financial Exhibits of Average Plant Requirements ... D- 1 TABLES 1964 1. Deliveries to Kagbele Pilot Plant ....... VII-21 2. 1964 Deliveries Broken Down by Political Sections . VII-23 3. 1965 Deliveries of Fruit to Plants in Bentimodiah, Yogoya, and Kanderiah . VTI-30 4. Comparative Weekly Palm Fruit Deliveries in the Wonkifong Area -- May thru July, 1964 and 1965 .. VII-31 5. 1965 Output of Three Plants VII-33 6. Comparison of Deliveries to Kanderiah, Yogoya and Bentimodiah Plants During the 1964, 1965, 1966 Seasons VII-3 9 7. 1966 Output of Three Plants VII-41 MAP Palm Oil Project Installations . Frontispiece THE PRELIMINARY STUDY 1-1 I. THE PRELIMINARY STUDY The palm oil project was born following a request from the President of the Republic of Guinea to the President of the United States of America for the assistance of the United States to increase the pro¬ duction of vegetable oil in Guinea,, USAID retained Checchi and Company to make a rapid study to determine the type of industry which could be established in a short time to increase the production of vegetable oil. The results were sub¬ mitted to the Government of Guinea at the beginning of 1963 under the title, "The Prospects for Edible Oil Production in Guinea. " The study concluded that: 9 The installation of large-scale mills for the extraction of peanut or palm kernel oil would not be economic at that time, and that their establishment would take a long time. • The installation of an industrial palm oil mill could only be based on a supply of fruit from a selected oil palm plantation because all attempts elsewhere in West Africa to supply oil mills exclusively from natural groves had failed. At that time, the existing plantations in Guinea were insufficient to supply a mill, and the con¬ ditions of supply based on natural groves were even more negative. 1-2 o To take a first step forward it was advisable to aid existing producers to process their fruit in greater quantity with higher efficiency and lower cost and effort. This could be achieved by the use of small hydraulic hand-presses already developed and tested in Nigeria. © These presses, inexpensive and simple to operate, could be set up in villages for use by small groups of producers or by cooperatives which could easily amortize them and even obtain a sizeable profit. Their distribution could bring about a considerable increase in national production. In order to implement these conclusions the report recommended that: © A pilot plant should be installed near Conakry to test the machines under Guinean conditions and to train personnel. © Six other plants should be installed in Lower Guinea and the forest region if the pilot plant proved viable and if the cooperatives or other type of fruit supply organization could be set up and personnel trained. 1-3 At the same time, the GOG should begin a program to encourage the establishment of selected palm plantations with the aim of attaining the area neces¬ sary to assure a supply to an industrial oil mill. II-l II. THE PROJECT AGREEMENTS The conclusions and recommendations of the study were accepted in their entirety by the GOG which signed a one-year agreement with USAID on February 1, 1963, to assure the financial and technical assis¬ tance of the United States for the realization of a project that would: e Increase the production and harvesting of palm fruit. © Organize the producers, collectors, processors and sellers of vegetable oil through cooperatives or some other appropriate form of organization if cooperatives should not prove feasible. © Install a pilot operation near a sufficient source of palm fruit either near Conakry or in the Boffa- Boke region. © Provide the equipment and the technical assistance required for the installation and operation of the presses and for the organization of the producers, collectors, processors, and sellers. For the implementation of the above aims the agreement provided that: o USAID would purchase the presses, auxiliary equipment, and vehicles, and would furnish tech¬ nical assistance by means of a consulting contract. II-2 o The GOG would provide buildings for the oil mills, personnel to be trained in project operations, working capital, offices, and logistic support. In addition, the GOG agreed to establish with the help of the contractor an appropriate organization for the collection of raw material, operation of the plants, and marketing of the product. This organization could be either a governmental, cooperative, private, or mixed enterprise. At the expiration of the above agreement a new agreement was signed on March 31, 1964, which included certain modifications sug¬ gested by experience to that date. In particular, it provided additional dollar financing by USAID to prolong the technical assistance. Among other things, the GOG agreed especially to: o Designate a full-time project manager with the authority necessary to carry out project operations. © Establish or designate before June 30, 1964, an organism to take over the operation of the project. © Assure the timely availability of GOG-contributed local currency financing on request of the project manager. II— 3 On November 23, 1964, another agreement prolonged the finan¬ cing of the project by both sides for one year. This agreement was modified by an amendment signed on March 23, 1965. In this, the GOG agreed specifically to: © Appoint a qualified, full-time person to the post of project manager. 9 Develop an organization to assure the regular operation of the plants and the supply system. 0 Assure local currency financing by releasing the necessary counterpart funds to the Trust Fund. o Provide for the participation in the project of Peace Corps volunteers, o Furnish in the localities of the plants lodgings and offices for the personnel of the project including the contract technicians and Peace Corps volunteers. CONCLUSIONS III-l ; III. CONCLUSIONS The palm oil project was a qualified success. This may seem a strange conclusion in view of the outcome, but it becomes less so when one considers the purposes and accomplishments of the project. The purpose of the project in concrete terms was to build and op¬ erate a pilot plant to determine the conditions needed for economic via¬ bility of the small edible oil production scheme in Guinea.

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