n early April, the government promised a series of measures to protect and encourage the fragile cashew processing industry in Senegal. On each tonne of raw nuts exported, 32 FCFA had to be levied and the exporters duly registered with the authorities, to have traceability of the actors coming mostly from India and Vietnam, the two largest cashew producers in the world. But a month later, none of these measures are in place. Faced with strong global demand and without regulatory measures, prices are already at 750 CFA francs per kilo, unattainable for the ten companies that process cashew nuts in Senegal , and like that of Elimane Drame, in Ziguinchor, Casamance. " What worries us is that the walnuts are disappearing. It's worrying because, as processors, we don't have access to the raw material. We'll be forced to close. We might even have to lay off staff or even close down ," he explains. Just over 1,000 jobs are at risk. To avoid closure, the country's dozen or so processing plants are asking the government to secure a stock of 7,000 tons of cashew nuts at an affordable price so that these companies can continue operating and work toward industrializing the sector.