Apart from Agrécol Afrique, also the Direction Horticole of the Ministry of Agriculture plays an important part in the technical assistance, in the field of fruit fly control, an important pest in mango in West Africa.
The training of the pilot farmers in organic mango production and the set-up of the internal control system has all proceeded well, and BNO received its first inspection and in-conversion status in 2008 and full organic status was obtained in May 2009, ahead of the 2009 season.
The project encountered difficulties in finding an exporter willing to work with BNO to export the organic mangoes. After two false starts, Agrécol Afrique is now assisting BNO to export directly, making use of Feltiplex, a rental packing facility that has been built through a World Bank funded project.