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Africa Should Not Be Importing Food Says Nabanja

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The Prime Minister says it is shameful that the continent continues to import food from other continent when it has 65% of arable land, abundant water , and good days of sunshine.
09 Jan 2025 19:13
Nabanja speaking at the opening of The Extraordinary Summit on Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programmes (CAADP) organized by the African Union Commission and hosted by the Government of Uganda

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   The Prime Minister, Robina Nabanja has challenged Minister of Agriculture from Africa tow work towards reducing what she described Africa’s over reliance on food imports  out of the continent. 

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Nabanja made the call during the opening The Extraordinary Summit on Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programmes (CAADP) organized by the African Union Commission and hosted by the Government of Uganda.  

“The Africa Development Bank report indicates that more than 60% of Africa’s working population is engaged in Agriculture. That the soil across the continent is rich, that Africa has 65% of the world’s uncultivated arable land.  And that Africa has abundant fresh water, enough rainfall and a good number of days of sunshine. Yet in 2021, Africa’s food imports were about 100 billion US dollars fueled mainly by population growth. What a shame,” she remarked.

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She challenged the Ministers to come out with proposals on how Africa can out of what she described as undesirable situation.

Nabanja said Africa must feed itself if it is to guarantee its future. The Summit will bring together a wide array of stakeholders, including African Heads of State and Government, Ministers, Regional Economic Communities.   

The Summit takes place at time when Africa is working towards overcoming challenges identified in the Malabo Biennial Reviews and to ensure that the continent’s agriculture and food systems are resilient, inclusive, and capable of meeting growing demands.     

The outgoing Africa Union commissioner for Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy, and Sustainable Environment, Josefa Leonel Correia Sacko decried that reports continue to indicate that Africa is a continent of food insecurity.

“Let’s change the narrative the time is now let’s feed Africa. Let all the citizens of Africa have access to a nutritious food and affordable food” said Correia Sacko who is ending her second term at the African Union body. 

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She has noted that there is a lack of investment towards more foods production most of the African countries.  Some studies estimates that Africa spends between $35-40 billion dollars annually on food imports. 

Food and nutrition experts have warned that if nothing is done, or if Africa doesn’t change its narrative, it will import foods worth $120 billion annually.

Development experts further suggest the need for an inclusive growth where all the citizens are out of poverty and are benefiting from the essential needs of humankind. 

They have suggested the need to take the agricultural sector seriously. In the Malabo Declaration the heads of States and governments from Africa had declared there would be zero hunger in the continent by 2025.

However, it is being observed that hunger and malnutrition are again on the rise in a number of countries. This calls for an increase in efforts to address the hunger, the food and nutrition security,    

While the continent has faced challenges from climate change, the emergence of Fall Armyworm, desert locusts and the COVID 19 pandemic among others, some pundit insist that some governments have to been deliberate in their efforts as the Maputo Declaration 2003-2013 and the Malabo Declaration 2014.     

Learning from Ethiopia

Ethiopia is among the few Africa countries that are working towards the elimination of what it called non-essential food items.

Dr Grirma Amente, the Minister for Agriculture for the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia told the summit in Kampala the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programmes (CAADP) has been instrumental in guiding their efforts to enhance agricultural productivity, imp[rove food security and to promote sustainable practices

. He revealed that Ethiopia has cascaded CAADP into its national agricultural investment plans which he said has focused into transforming the agricultural sector to achieve food and nutritional security, improve livelihoods and foster economic growth.  

“The plan has significantly increased agriculture budget allocation and has demonstrated it commitment to meet the 6% annual growth target of CAADP in the last five years. Furthermore, Ethiopia has taken practical steps by implementing national initiatives towards achieving the CAADP objectives,”

He some of the initiative include the Climate resilient wheat initiative which he said is aimed at increasing national wheat production to 23 million tons annually. The initiative is expected to turn Ethiopia to wheat self-sufficiency after over 50 years of net wheat imports.  

Grirma urged countries not to look at agriculture as merely a sector. “It is the backbone of our economies, it a source livelihoods for millions, and a key driver of sustainable development” said Amente.      

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He suggested the need to create opportunities for Africa’s young people to engage in Agriculture through education, access to finance, and technology and empowering women as key player.

“As we look ahead, we must acknowledge t the evolving challenges, climate change, population growth, urbanization and the ongoing impact of global pandemic challenges” he advised. 

While Ethiopia has demonstrated that plans such as CAADP can work,  the African Development Bank projected that Africa’s food imports would reach $90 billion by 2030, these projections were based on trends during 2000-2010. Studies have shown that the region imported roughly $40 billion per year over the past four years while it exported roughly $35 billion. 

The third biannual review of the implementation of the CAADP in 2023 noted that African countries should have performed better that they did in the previous ten years. 

The Kampala Declaration, CAADP Strategy and Acton Plan for 2026-2035 The Summit in Kampala is expected to adopt the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) Strategy and Acton Plan for 2026-2035. 

The Extraordinary AU Summit in Kampala has also been dubbed the Post-Malabo CAADP. The participants who include Agricultures Ministers from Africa are expected to redefine Africa’s agricultural transformation agenda for the next decade.

The Agriculture, Animal Industries and Fisheries Minister, Frank Tumwebaze said 2025 will be a defining year for the future of Africa’s agricultural sector. “I’m glad that we are beginning the year by high-level discussion on the agriculture sector” said Tmuwebza who has for the last two years been doubling as the Chairperson of the Specialized Technical Committee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Water and Environment. 

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The new CAADP Strategy and Action Plan will be successor strategy for the Malabo Declaration 2014 in which leaders from Africa targeted a 6% annual growth in the Agricultural sector. AU member states were asked to commit 10% of the national budgets to agriculture.  The Malabo Declarations renewed the ambition until 2024 including, the eradication of poverty, hunger, reducing malnutrition and tripling Intra Africa Trade among others. The CAADP Strategy 2026-2036 will be the third in a series of 10-year strategies focusing on agricultural development on the continent.    

Broader Context of CAADP Since its inception in 2003, the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) has served as the cornerstone of agricultural transformation in Africa.   Its goals include achieving a 6% annual growth rate in agriculture, ensuring 10% budget allocation to the sector, and addressing food security, nutrition, and rural poverty while safeguarding the environment. Building on the successes of the Maputo (2003) and Malabo (2014) Declarations, the post-Malabo agenda seeks to address the gaps identified in recent Biennial Reviews. The draft Ten-Year CAADP Strategy and Action Plan (2026-2035) provides a forward-looking blueprint for inclusive, resilient, and sustainable agri-food systems transformation.