Prime Minister Nabanja opens the African Union’s CAADP Summit with a call to boost investment in Agrifood systems to reduce food imports.
Drake Nyamugabwa
The Ministers of Agriculture from various countries of Africa are gathering in Kampala for the African Union Extra-Ordinary Summit on The Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) Strategy and Action Plan 2026 – 35 from Thursday 9th -11th January 2025 at Speke Resort Hotel, Munyonyo.
The summit will according to the organizers adopt the Kampala Declaration on building a resilient and sustainable agrifood system for Africa.
During the opening of the session on Thursday, the Right Hon. Prime Minister Robinah Nabanja while congratulating the ministers or the milestone, during this summit Member States will consider and adopt the post-Malabo CAADP Agenda, henceforth to be known as the Kampala CAADP Agenda.
“With the Summit set to consider and adopt the Strategy and Action for the period up to 2035,…. as African countries, needed to do better, than we have been doing, to achieve the targets that we set for ourselves some twenty years back,” she said
She called upon agricultural sector Ministers to work towards reducing over-reliance on imported food and act to create resilient to climate change and other shocks.
“As the continent’s agricultural sector Ministers, I urge you to deliberately work to reduce Africa’s over-reliance on food imports from outside the continent. We must position the continent in such a manner that our agricultural sector is resilient to climate change as well as other shocks and is adaptive to advances in technology” sha said
State Minister for Agriculture Hon. Kyakulaga Fred Bwino officiated at the youth and women in agrifood systems pavilion on the sidelines of the CAADP summit where Ugandan products were on display.
Hon. Frank Tumwebaze
Hon. Frank K. Tumwebaze, Minister of Agriculture, Animal Industry And Fisheries And Chairperson Of The African Union Specialized Technical Committee On Agriculture, Rural Development, Water And Environment, during his remarks, said that there is a need to move forward to implement the resolution CAADP agenda which he said has taken along way in its development.
“Colleague Ministers, the planning phase of the Kampala CAADP Agenda ends during this Summit. We must, therefore, move into implementation and execution mode. We will be having a detailed discussion on the Strategy and Action Plan, and the Kampala Declaration after this opening session, and I urge you to be as candid as possible” he said
He explained the Specialized Technical Committee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Water and Environment which he heads has composed of 1st Vice Chair from the Republic of Cameroon, 2nd Vice Chair from the Republic of Cote d’ Ivoire, 3rd Vice Chair from the Republic of Namibia and a Rapporteur from Arab Republic of Egypt.
H.E. Amb. Josefa Sacko, The African Union Commissioner for Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy and Sustainable Environment highlighted the history of the development of the CAADP agenda.
He said that in February 2024, the African Union Commission presented the 4th CAADP biennial review report to African Heads of State and Government during the 37th Ordinary Session of the AU Assembly which noted with concern that “no single country was on track to meet the Malabo CAADP goals and targets by 2025. As such, they directed the African Union Commission and the African Union Development Agency (AUDA-NEPAD), working with partners, to develop a post-Malabo CAADP agenda that would respond to the challenges and opportunities facing Africa’s agrifood systems.”
The African Development Bank report indicates that more than 60% of Africa’s working population is engaged in agriculture, the soil across most of the continent is rich and fertile, Africa has 65% of the world’s remaining uncultivated arable land and Africa has abundant fresh water, with enough rainfall and a good number of days of sunshine each year yet, in 2021, Africa’s food imports were about USD 100 Billion fueled mainly by population growth.
The Minister of Agriculture of Ethiopia, H.E. Girma Amente, in his opening remarks, highlighted six years of achievements in agricultural productivity and food self-sufficiency in Ethiopia while emphasizing the need for investing in sustainable agricultural practices, enhancing crop productivity, &reducing post-harvest crop losses, alleviate poverty & food shortages of Africa
It should be remembered that in 2003, Heads of State and Government adopted the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) as one of the strategies towards the realization of Africa’s Agenda 2063, its now about thirty-eight years to the end of Africa’s Agenda 2063.
Group photo of all delategat at the CAADP summit
