By early 2027, Gabon will halt all imports of frozen chicken, replacing them with locally produced poultry under a 700 billion FCFA initiative unveiled by the ministry of agriculture. The country targets 125,000 tonnes of broiler meat per year by 2028, aiming to cover domestic demand that currently stands at around 65,000 tonnes annually, according to FAO figures.
On 2 June 2026, agriculture minister Pacôme Kossi presented the ambitious programme before parliament. The plan’s cornerstone is a ban on frozen chicken imports effective 1 January 2027, which will replace an annual inflow of 65,000 tonnes of imported poultry. Economist Louis Ndong explained the vision: “Achieve food sovereignty to lighten households’ shopping baskets.”
An ecosystem to be built
Hervais Omva, president of the Zambia-based NGO IDRC Africa and an expert in poultry value chains, stressed that success hinges on building the entire production chain. “The president set the direction, now sector actors must build the ecosystem upstream and downstream,” he said. Essential to that is local production of maize and soya, which together account for roughly 75% of poultry feed. “One key challenge will be producing millions of tonnes of these cereals locally,” Omva warned.
Job creation is another major hurdle. “Some automated slaughterhouses can process up to 60,000 chickens per day with only about twenty employees. If youth unemployment is also to be tackled, a model adapted to local realities must be chosen,” he added.
Gabon turns to African investors
Libreville is seeking investment from across the continent. After an appeal by Brice Clotaire Oligui Nguema at the Kigali summit in mid-May 2026, several African operators were received at the presidential palace on 9 June. The government states that the technical framework is ready and an investment bank is already operational. A senior agriculture ministry official said “the various mechanisms will be rolled out gradually.”
In Port-Gentil, G.M., a poultry farmer with a decade of experience and a flock of 10,000 chickens, sees the policy as a major opportunity. “The potential is real, but moving to industrial production requires huge investments,” he confided.
A sector to be structured
The Covid-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine underscored the vulnerability of import-dependent countries 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 population is under 26, and youth unemployment stands between 30% and 38%, per UNDP data. The poultry sector thus represents an agricultural, economic and social challenge. Omva addressed young Africans directly: “The president has paved the way. Investors are ready.”
