Helping Africa Build Resilient, Equitable, and Sustainable Food Systems

Summary

In 2020, Africa faced unprecedented challenges due to COVID-19, particularly impacting the most vulnerable. Despite setbacks in health and poverty reduction, the continent harnessed innovation in agriculture—a key sector for prosperity. The African Green Revolution Forum (AGRF), with its partnerships and knowledge, focuses on supporting smallholder farmers, improving access to inputs, and linking them to markets. The forum emphasizes the importance of agricultural transformation to address hunger, poverty, and environmental issues, using the pandemic as a catalyst for planning a sustainable and transformative future.

Takeaways

• 🌎 The year has been challenging, especially for the poorest and most vulnerable, with plans and strategies disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
• 📉 Significant gains in health and poverty reduction have been lost during the pandemic, affecting Africa and its agricultural sector.
• 🌾 Despite setbacks, there is a reminder of the potential for progress, even in difficult times, through harnessing the continent's resources.
• 🔄 The pandemic has highlighted the importance of focusing on the strengths of African economies, particularly agriculture.
• 🌱 Agriculture is crucial for Africa's recovery and prosperity post-COVID-19, emphasizing the need for transformation in the sector.
• 🤝 The AGRF (African Green Revolution Forum) is vital for exploring and building solutions to support agricultural transformation.
• 📚 AGRF's collaborations and publications, such as the Africa Agricultural Status Report, are key to supporting the agricultural sector.
• 🏆 Recognitions like the Africa Food Prize by AGRF are part of the efforts to drive innovation and improvement in agriculture.
• 👨‍🌾 Smallholder farmers are central to Africa's agricultural backbone, and AGRF works to improve their access to inputs and markets.
• 🚧 Infrastructure like roads and energy is essential to link farmers to markets and ensure the safety and quality of agricultural products.
• 🌱 Agricultural transformation is key to addressing long-term challenges like hunger, poverty, and climate change in Africa.

Q & A

What challenges did the year 2020 present, particularly for the poorest and most vulnerable?

The year 2020 presented unprecedented challenges, especially for the poorest and most vulnerable, due to the emergence of COVID-19, which led to setbacks in health and poverty gains.

How has the pandemic impacted Africa's progress in health and poverty reduction?

The pandemic has resulted in the loss of hard-won gains on health and poverty in Africa, highlighting the need for a focus on the continent's strengths and opportunities.

What role does agriculture play in Africa's economy and recovery post-COVID-19?

Agriculture is a cornerstone of Africa's prosperity and is key to building back better after the COVID-19 pandemic, as most of Africa's economies are driven by it.

Why are forums like the AGRF important in the context of Africa's agricultural transformation?

Forums like the AGRF are crucial as they explore and build solutions to support transformational change in the agricultural sector, leveraging the continent's strengths and opportunities.

What are some of the initiatives being undertaken to support smallholder farmers in Mozambique?

Initiatives include working with input providers to demonstrate the best use of seeds and fertilizers to increase productivity, and ensuring that smallholder farmers have access to markets.

What infrastructure is needed to link smallholder farmers to the market?

Infrastructure needed includes roads for transporting produce to markets, energy for proper storage and processing of perishable goods, and addressing food safety for consumer protection.

How does the AGRF contribute to the support of smallholder farmers?

The AGRF contributes by bringing together a wealth of experience, partnerships, and knowledge through collaborations and initiatives aimed at supporting the backbone of Africa, the smallholder farmer.

What are some of the long-term issues that agricultural transformation can help tackle in Africa?

Agricultural transformation can help tackle long-term issues such as hunger, poverty, environmental degradation, and climate change in Africa.

How does the AGRF plan to use the challenge of COVID-19 to drive agricultural transformation?

The AGRF aims to use the COVID-19 challenge as a catalyst for planning a way forward for agricultural transformation, to address and solve large, persistent problems in Africa.

What is the significance of the Africa Agricultural Status Report (AASR) and the Africa Food Prize in the context of the AGRF?

The AASR and the Africa Food Prize are significant as they provide trailblazing recognition and knowledge, contributing to the service of Africa's smallholder farmers and the overall agricultural sector.

What is the call to action for the audience in the context of the AGRF 2020?

The call to action is to join the AGRF 2020 to contribute to making agricultural transformation happen, leveraging the collective efforts and resources to overcome the challenges faced by Africa's agricultural sector.

Outlines

00:00

🌱 Agricultural Transformation Amidst Challenges

The paragraph discusses the difficulties faced by the poorest and most vulnerable during the unprecedented challenges of 2020, particularly due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite setbacks in health and poverty, there is a focus on the potential for positive change, especially in Africa's agricultural sector. The importance of forums like the African Green Revolution Forum (AGRF) is highlighted for exploring and building solutions for transformational change. Agriculture is identified as a key sector for Africa's recovery and prosperity, with a need to harness the continent's strengths and opportunities. The paragraph emphasizes the importance of supporting smallholder farmers with access to inputs, linking them to markets, and addressing food safety and other challenges to ensure agricultural transformation contributes to solving long-term issues like hunger, poverty, and environmental degradation.

Keywords

💡Covid-19

Covid-19 refers to the novel coronavirus disease that emerged in late 2019 and has led to a global pandemic. In the context of the video, it is highlighted as an unprecedented challenge that has disrupted plans and strategies, particularly affecting the poorest and most vulnerable populations. The pandemic has also led to setbacks in health and poverty reduction efforts, emphasizing the need for innovative solutions to combat its impacts.

💡Agriculture

Agriculture is the art and science of cultivating plants and livestock for food, fiber, and other products. It is central to the video's theme as it discusses the importance of agricultural transformation in Africa, especially in driving economic recovery and addressing food security. The script mentions that most of Africa's economies are driven by agriculture, making it a key sector for building back better after the pandemic.

💡AGRA (Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa)

AGRA stands for the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa, an organization that seeks to transform agriculture in Africa by developing and disseminating new technologies and practices. The video underscores the role of AGRA in fostering innovation and collaboration to support the agricultural sector, particularly in the face of challenges like Covid-19.

💡Smallholder Farmers

Smallholder farmers are individuals or families who cultivate small plots of land, often with limited resources. The video emphasizes the importance of supporting these farmers, who form the backbone of Africa's agricultural sector. It mentions initiatives to improve their access to inputs like seeds and fertilizers and to link them to markets, which is crucial for increasing their productivity and income.

💡Productivity

Productivity in agriculture refers to the efficiency with which inputs are used to produce outputs, such as crops or livestock. The video discusses the need to enhance productivity among smallholder farmers by demonstrating the best use of seeds and fertilizers, which is essential for improving their livelihoods and contributing to food security.

💡Market Access

Market access refers to the ability of farmers to sell their products in markets. The video highlights the importance of connecting smallholder farmers to markets, which involves improving infrastructure like roads and addressing challenges such as food perishability and processing needs. This is crucial for ensuring that farmers can sell their produce and benefit from their labor.

💡Food Safety

Food safety encompasses the practices and measures to ensure that food is safe for consumption, free from contaminants, and properly handled. The video mentions the need to address food safety issues to ensure that the food produced is not only available but also safe for consumers, which is a critical aspect of maintaining public health.

💡Hunger and Poverty

Hunger and poverty are significant social issues that the video associates with the broader challenges faced by Africa. The pandemic has exacerbated these problems, and the video suggests that agricultural transformation is essential in the long-term fight against hunger and poverty, emphasizing the need for sustainable and inclusive growth.

💡Environmental Degradation

Environmental degradation refers to the deterioration of the natural environment through processes such as deforestation, pollution, and loss of biodiversity. The video implies that agricultural transformation must consider environmental sustainability to address and mitigate the impacts of degradation, which is a long-term challenge for Africa.

💡Climate Change

Climate change refers to long-term shifts in temperature, precipitation, and other atmospheric conditions, often attributed to human activities. The video discusses how climate change remains a persistent challenge that agricultural transformation must address, as it affects the viability of farming practices and food production.

💡Transformational Change

Transformational change refers to profound and systemic shifts that lead to significant improvements or innovations in a particular field. In the video, the term is used to describe the type of change needed in the agricultural sector to overcome challenges like Covid-19 and to build a more resilient and prosperous future for Africa.

Highlights

2020 has been a challenging year, especially for the poorest and most vulnerable populations.

Plans and strategies were developed and implemented to address the hardships.

The COVID-19 pandemic introduced unprecedented challenges, affecting Africa and its agricultural sector.

Health and poverty gains were reversed during the pandemic, impacting the most vulnerable.

Despite setbacks, the potential for progress in Africa remains, especially in agriculture.

Agriculture is key to Africa's economic recovery post-COVID-19.

The need to focus on the strengths of Africa's economies, such as agriculture, has been emphasized by the pandemic.

Forums like the AGRF are crucial for exploring and building solutions for agricultural transformation.

Agriculture is the cornerstone of Africa's prosperity, and AGRF plays a significant role in its development.

AGRF brings together a wealth of experience, partnerships, and knowledge to support smallholder farmers.

In Mozambique, efforts are being made to improve smallholder farmers' access to inputs and increase productivity.

Linking smallholder farmers to markets is essential for their success.

Infrastructure like roads and energy is necessary for moving and processing agricultural products.

Food safety is a critical issue that needs to be addressed for the agricultural sector.

The COVID-19 pandemic is a significant challenge, but hunger, poverty, and environmental issues persist.

Agricultural transformation is vital for addressing long-term issues in Africa.

The pandemic should be used as an opportunity to plan for agricultural transformation and solve large-scale problems.

AGRF 2020 is a platform to make agricultural transformation happen.

Transcripts

it's been a tough year

with tough times for all but

particularly

for the poorest and most vulnerable

plans were made

strategies set resolutions made and

rolled out

then 2020 took a sharp turn into

unprecedented territory

kobit 19 was a brand new challenge

africa

and also agra has had to face

[Music]

hard wound gains on health and poverty

have been lost

during the pandemic but despite the

setbacks

we are reminded as always by what is

possible

even when things are hard

when the energies innovation and

resources of the continent

are harnessed with the majority of

africa's economies

driven by agriculture agriculture

transformation

even when times are hard is key to

building back better

after the kovit 19 pandemic has passed

this pandemic has made clear the need to

focus on the strengths

and opportunities of our economies such

as agriculture

it means that forums like the agrf where

solutions

are explored and built to support

transformational change

in the agricultural sector are more

important than ever

agriculture is the cornerstone

of africa's prosperity

agref brings together wealth of

experience

breadth of partnerships and depth of

knowledge through powerful

collaborations

such as piata renowned publications such

as the africa agricultural status report

aasr trailblazing recognitions

such as the africa food prize and more

all in service to the backbone of africa

the smallholder farmer we have found

that

in the mozambique a lot of the

smallholder farmers do not have

ready access to inputs so what we are

doing

is to work with the input providers to

do demonstrations that can show the

farmers

the best ways that they can use a

generation seed

that they can use fertilizers so that

they can bring up

their productivity we need to make sure

that we can link

these small order farmers to

the market you know and that's where you

need the roads

you know moving whatever they produce to

the market

you need energy because some of the food

are so perishable that they need to be

stored properly they need to be

processed

before they get to the market you need

to address the issue

of food safety because you know it's

not only producing but to make sure that

it's safe

for the consumers even though kovid is a

huge challenge

hunger and poverty environmental

degradation

and climate change remain with us

agricultural transformation will be

critical in helping tackling

these long-term issues that need to be

solved in africa

we need to use this challenge of covet

19 to plan a way forward for

agricultural transformation

to help solve these large problems

[Music]

let's make it happen at agrf 2020

see you there