On 2 June 2026, Gabon’s Minister of Agriculture, Pacôme Kossi, unveiled a 700 billion CFA franc programme before parliament. The goal: reach self-sufficiency in poultry meat by 1 January 2027, when the country will ban all imports of frozen chicken. Gabon currently imports about 65,000 tonnes of frozen poultry each year, matching its annual consumption, according to FAO figures. Economist Louis Ndong said the objective is straightforward: “Achieve food sovereignty to lighten the household basket.”

Building the ecosystem

Hervais Omva, president of Zambia-based NGO IDRC Africa and a poultry sector expert, stressed that the project’s success hinges on building the entire production chain. “The president set the direction. Now sector players must construct the upstream and downstream ecosystem,” he explained. Local production of maize and soya is critical, as these crops account for nearly 75% of poultry feed. “One of the biggest challenges will be producing millions of tonnes of these cereals locally,” he noted. Job creation is another major factor. “Some automated slaughterhouses can process up to 60,000 chickens a day with only about twenty employees. If the aim is also to reduce youth unemployment, we need a model adapted to local realities,” he added.

Gabon turns to African investors

Libreville plans to attract investors from across Africa to drive this transformation. After an appeal by Brice Clotaire Oligui Nguema at the mid-May 2026 Kigali summit, several African operators were received at the presidential palace on 9 June. The government says the technical framework is ready and an investment bank is already operational. A senior official in the Ministry of Agriculture stated that “the various mechanisms will be rolled out gradually.” In Port-Gentil, G.M., a poultry farmer with ten years of experience managing a 10,000-bird farm, sees this policy as a major opportunity. “The potential is real, but moving to industrial production requires huge investments,” he shared.

Structuring the sector

The Covid-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine reminded import-dependent nations of their vulnerability to global markets. Gabon now aims to boost domestic production to reduce that exposure. According to the Directorate General of Statistics, 54.6% of the Gabonese population is under 26, and youth unemployment ranges between 30% and 38%, per UNDP data. Developing the poultry sector is therefore not just an agricultural goal but also an economic and social necessity. Hervais Omva had a message for young Africans: “The president has paved the way. Investors are ready.”