An agricultural engineer holding two master’s degrees (in Food and Nutritional Security and in Project Management), Abdelmajid ALI DANDAKOYE has over fifteen years of professional experience and is a specialist in local milk and dairy value chains. He is currently completing a PhD entitled “Socio-economic viability of the local milk value chain in the Niamey dairy basin, Niger” at Abdou Moumouni University in Niamey.

Since 2017, Mr Dandakoye has been a member of the Nariindu project team, where he steered the project’s strategic orientation as Project Manager from 2018 to 2024. This experience enabled him to develop specialised expertise across the dairy sector value chain, from production to processing, including: organisational support for livestock farmers; technical assistance on milking hygiene and animal health; support to dairy unions in strengthening multi-service milk aggregation centres; assistance to artisanal processing units in product development and value addition; and support to producers in structuring local milk processing chains.

Until 2024, he was also actively involved in national stakeholder dialogue and consultation on issues related to the local milk sector in Niger, as well as at the regional level through his participation in the “My Milk is Local” campaign. In addition, Mr Dandakoye has regularly supported the Nigerien Ministry of Livestock in the preparation of public policy documents.

He is currently a Technical Expert at the ECOWAS Directorate of Agriculture and Rural Development (DADR), where he works on dairy value chains under the West Africa Milk Offensive Support Project (PAOLAO). This position places him at the interface between value chain actors and policy makers, contributing to the development and promotion of regional policies and evidence-based advocacy in favour of local milk.