By Aweys Yusuf

MOGADISHU, March 11 (Reuters) - In the bloodiest war zone of Mogadishu's rebellion, an entrepreneur and an aid group have sown a plan to revive Somalia's former agricultural glory by producing some of the world's highest quality sesame seed.

Small oil-rich sesame seeds have a nutty flavour and range in colour from white to black. They are added to breads such as bagels, baked into crackers, sprinkled onto sushi-style dishes and sprinkled on salads.

In Mogadishu's sprawling Bakara market, where allied Somali and Ethiopian military regularly bombard Islamist rebels, local businessman Abdulahi Ali Yusuf and Italian aid group CEFA have built a small plant to process the oilseeds.

If all goes according to plan, the small factory will help Somali farmers triple profits by bringing their sesame up to international export standards.

"We want to put the Somali brand on the map where it belongs, because it has all the right stuff in terms of climate and quality," said Baars, an agricultural engineer from the Waginengen University in the Netherlands.

Until now, any Somali sesame had to be taken elsewhere for processing, since poor storage raised the risk of "fungus or mouse droppings. There was no concept of keeping the quality," added Baars who is involved in the project.

Somalia has 200,000 hectares suitable for sesame, with an expected production of about 300 kg per hectare, he said.

That would put it about equal with Uganda, the fifth-largest world producer, according to the latest data available from the American Sesame Growers Association.

"It can get Guatemala quality prices, but now we have very skeptical buyers. That's what we want to change," he said.

If the plant stays open and Somali farmers can provide a steady crop, Somalia's per-tonne export price could reach close to $1,800, about par with Guatemala sesame prices, Baars said.

No official data exists for Somalia's current prices, but estimates put it around $600 a tonne, he said.

Unending conflict in Somalia has made its sesame market an ad-hoc arena -- limited to meeting an emergency crop shortage elsewhere -- given the inability for traders there to provide a product of international standards delivered on time.

Somalia sits at an ancient trade crossing, but anarchy since the 1991 overthrow of dictator Mohamed Siad Barre has hampered any hope of properly marketing the country's rich agricultural production -- or any other business.

That has contributed heavily to poverty in spite of the natural bounty.

'GOLD TO A FARMER'

After Baars and CEFA proved the business case for Somali sesame with a study, entrepreneur Abdulahi Ali Yusuf saw profit in separating the Horn of Africa nation's anarchy from its sesame business.

Yusuf and his Al-Mizan International Trading Company put up nearly $200,000 and CEFA added $100,000 with European Community backing.

"Our European consumers are very much interested in white sesame and this is the first sesame selecting machine to be brought to this country," said Yusuf, making reference to a market with high demand for high-quality seeds.

Bakara is shaken by constant gun and artillery battles between Islamist insurgents and troops from the interim Somali government and its Ethiopian allies, in an insurgency that has killed at least 6,500 people in the last year.

With a staff of 17 and two generators to cater for electricity in the shattered city, the plant can process 15 metric tonnes per hour, Yusuf said.

"The plant is in Mogadishu's Bakara market which is a very dangerous place now, but we are moving to another warehouse in northern Mogadishu which is a stable compared to Bakara and we will be running the factory probably next month," Yusuf said.

CEFA has provided seedstock and held seminars for farmers, who are enticed by the prospect of a $300 return on a cost of about $60 to produce a hectare./

"That's gold to a farmer," he said.

(For full Reuters Africa coverage and to have your say on the top issues, visit: http://africa.reuters.com/ ) (Writing and additional reporting in Nairobi by Bryson Hull, Editing by Peter Blackburn)

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