African leaders, businesses and international development organisations have pledged more than US$35 billion dollars to support smallholder farmers and local African agribusinesses during the next 10 years.
The commitments were made at the sixth African Green Revolution Forum in Nairobi, held from 5 to 9 September 2016, where more than 1,500 business figures from 40 countries convened to discuss the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead for the continent’s agricultural sectors.
“We are coming together at a time when our continent is filled with incredible opportunity, but at the same time it also is faced with profound threats in almost equal measure,” said Kenyan President, Uhuru Kenyatta, at a packed auditorium at the United Nations’ Africa Headquarters in Nairobi, adding that “the transformation of Africa will only work if we transform agriculture”.
The threats facing African farmers and agricultural business owners are outlined in the Africa Agriculture Status Report 2016, published by the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa. The report suggests the continent spends a total of around US$35 billion each year importing food, while around US$4 billion a year is lost due to food waste.
President Kenyatta was among the first to commit finances to agriculture at the forum, and said that Kenya will make US$200 million in funding available over the coming five years. The Kenya Commercial Bank Group, East Africa’s largest commercial bank, also said it intends to invest US$350 million in loans for smallholder farmers, of which 50,000 are women and another 50,000 youth farmworkers.
The biggest single financial commitment announced during the three-day event was a 10-year investment of US$24 billion by the African Development Bank (AfDB), the biggest commitment the bank has made to Africa’s agricultural sector to date.
“Africa must diversify agriculture, not as a way of life, but as a business. It is about adding value and modernising agriculture. Ending extreme poverty means investing in agriculture [and turning] the continent from a net food importer to a net food exporter,” said Akinwumi Adesina, president of the AfDB.
Other notable financial contributions include US$5 billion from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, a portion of which will go towards crop and livestock research, strengthening data, improving information systems, and providing better tools for farmers. The International Fund for Agricultural Development pledged US$3 billion over the next six years.
A fertiliser firm, OCP Africa, has committed to investing US$150 million over the next five years to support local fertiliser distribution, storage and blending, while the World Food Programme has promised to purchase at least US$120 million each year in agricultural products from smallholder farmers through a partnership called the Patient Procurement Platform.
The Patient Procurement Platform is public-private sector led consortium of organisations seeking to transform food value chains in emerging markets.