The 2023 Africa Agriculture Status Report (AASR) has been released with the message that the repercussions of inaction are not just confined to hunger and malnutrition but extend to economic, social, and environmental domains, with the potential to undermine the progress made over the years.
We’ve learnt that the report is being released at a time when the continent’s food systems are dealing with a number of critical issues brought on by increased food demand amidst production difficulties due to climate change and the potential consequences of inaction.
Under the theme “Empowering Africa’s Food Systems”, AASR23 offers an in-depth exploration of the vulnerabilities, challenges, and transformative potential of the continent’s food systems.
Dr. Agnes Kalibata the Alliance for Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) president says, the timely report delves into a holistic understanding of the intricacies of African food systems from socio-economic vulnerabilities to the pivotal role of knowledge and technology, while highlighting the urgent need for innovative financing.
“This report strives to show that Innovative Finance is not just a buzzword – it is an essential tool for Africa’s journey towards sustainable, resilient, and inclusive food systems. As the continent faces the dual challenges of rapid population growth and climate change, finding new financing mechanisms will be paramount in shaping a prosperous and food-secure future for all its citizens,” she said.
According to the report, out of the 50 indicators outlined in the Food Systems Countdown Initiative (FSCI) framework, sub-Saharan African countries are performing worse than the global average in a total of 32 indicators, mostly related to diets, nutrition, and health.
“On the other hand, sub-Saharan African countries are performing better than the global average in the remaining 18 indicators, including those on food systems’ greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and biosphere integrity. The above is accentuated by the fact that up to 650 million Africans—half of the continent’s population—lack economic or physical access to sufficient food to meet their minimum needs every day (BCG, 2021),” reads part of the report.
“While African governments are committed to tripling intra-African trade in agricultural commodities and services by 2025 as part of the 2014 Malabo Declaration, the aspiration is far-fetched as this kind of trade continues to dwindle from its peak in 2013 to less than 15 per cent in 2022. However, if fully implemented, the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) could raise household income by nine per cent by 2035 while lifting 50 million people out of extreme poverty. Africa could see Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) increase by between 111 and 159 per cent under the AfCFTA,” the report further reads.
The report also offers a deep dive into the underlying challenges that have historically held back the potential of the continent’s vast natural resources. Overall, despite progress in food production, processing and distribution, significant challenges and failures persist, leading to an alarmingly poor state of food and nutrition security across the continent. The report unveils a multifaceted web of challenges that stretch from production to consumption.
While daunting, the report provides a clear call for a concerted response to these challenges from governments, the private sector, communities, and individuals alike.
“The findings in this year’s AASR are not just a reflection of the current challenges but also a roadmap for future actions, guiding the continent towards food systems where every African will have access to sustainable, healthy diets,” said Dr. John M. Ulimwengu, the report’s lead author.
About the AASR
The Africa Agriculture Status Report (AASR) is an annual publication that is published by the AGRA since 2013. The AASR has become an important reference point and handbook for Africa’s leaders in their plans to transform the continent’s agricultural prospects for emerging topics on agriculture in Sub-Saharan Africa, such as Feeding Africa’s Cities (2020), Building Resilient and Sustainable Food Africa Systems (2021) and Accelerating African Food Systems Transformation (2022). The Report puts forward recommendations based on immense scholarly effort and valuable expert contributions for immediate actions and steps that African governments, Pan-African organizations, development partners, the private sector, and civil society must take to accelerate the transformation of food systems. Among the trends observed in past reports include increased public-private partnership, adoption of technology, use of improved agricultural inputs, a greater focus on capacity development and an expanded focus on extension services. Against this backdrop, the 2023 AASR report will not only provide a comprehensive analysis of Africa’s progress but also inspire discussions and collaborations that shape the future of African agriculture.
About AGRA
AGRA is a farmer-centered, African-led, partnerships-driven institution that is working to transform smallholder farming from a solitary struggle to survive to a business that thrives. In collaboration with its partners—including African governments, researchers, development partners, the private sector and civil society— AGRA’s work primarily focuses on smallholder farmers – men and women who typically cultivate staple crops on two hectares or less. AGRA has learned a lot from efforts during its first decade and is now recognized across the continent as a strong voice for African rural development, a prosperous agricultural economy, and for supporting thousands of small African businesses and millions of African families to improve agriculture as a way to ensure food security and improve their livelihoods.
For more information about AGRA, visit https://agra.org/
About the AGRF
The AGRF, recently rebranded to Africa’s Food Systems Forum, is the world’s premier forum for African agriculture, bringing together stakeholders in the agricultural landscape to take practical actions and share lessons that will move African agriculture forward. Under AGRF’s current strategy, the Forum is particularly focused on driving progress of the Malabo Declaration by 2025 as the priority set of commitments African Heads of State and Government have made to strengthen agricultural development at the center of the continent’s overall development and progress. The AGRF is organised by the AGRF Partners Group, a coalition of institutions that care about Africa’s agriculture transformation.
For more information about AGRF, visit https://agrf.org
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