MALI – The International Finance Corporation (IFC) plans to grant US$4.3M to Société Malienne de Biscuiterie (SOMABIS), an established biscuit manufacturer in Mali, to support the Company’s expansion investment program.
According to IFC, this project will expand the company’s production capacity on a new site with the installation of a new state-of-the-art production line of biscuits, with a double capacity of 1,200 kg per hour compared to the current line of 650 kg per hour.
The new facility will also include a production line of wafers with a capacity of 500kg per hour, which will be a new business segment for the Company.
According to Mali’s biscuit giant, the new site, which will be situated in the Banancoro industrial zone located south of Bamako will host two warehouses for the plant and an administration building.
The project is also expected to be supported by the IDA20 Private Sector Window Blended Finance Facility (IDA PSW BFF) in the amount of up to EUR 2 million (US$2.14M) according to officials.
Once the unit is installed, it will be the second biscuit factory that SOMABIS has in Mali. The company’s first factory, also located in Bamako, is based in the suburb of Baco-Djicoroni and supplies 650 kg of biscuits per hour.
The investment comes at a time when the confectionery and snacks market is booming in Africa.
Biscuits contain nutrients including carbs, lipids, and fibers, all of which are important for human health. As a popular breakfast food all around the world, Africa is slowly adopting the norm of snacking, positively contributing to the biscuit market.
In addition, biscuits are convenient to transport and store and they can be enjoyed as desired hence termed as a convenient food product that may be enjoyed by people of all ages.
However, in Mali, with the increasing demand, biscuit imports total on average more than US$3 million per year as the country is still not able to meet the consumption needs.
In 2022, Mali imported more than $4 million worth of biscuits, according to data compiled on the Trade Map platform.
Société Malienne de Biscuiterie (SOMABIS) is therefore looking into exploiting consumption opportunities with a double expansion of production capacity.
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