Hopewell Radebe
5 June 2008
Johannesburg — THE United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) said yesterday key players in agricultural development had agreed to focus on increasing food production in "breadbasket areas" that enjoyed relatively good rainfall, soil, infrastructure and markets .
Kofi Annan, board chairman of the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (Agra ), said the collaborative initiative was part of the alliance's strategic vision to build partnerships.
Agra pools the strengths and resources of the public and private sectors, civil society, farmers' organisations, donors, scientists and entrepreneurs across the agricultural value chain. Annan said: "We must implement immediate solutions for today's crisis and do so in the context of a long-term, concerted effort to transform smallholder agriculture, to increase productivity and sustainability, and to end poverty and hunger."
Farming in Africa has suffered from poorly developed markets, lack of investment and poor infrastructure in rural areas, while the industry in the US and Europe has enjoyed significant government subsidies.
According to the World Food Programme (WFP), food production has declined in Africa over the past 30 years. Per capita and farm productivity are just a quarter of the global average.
More than 200-million people are chronically hungry and 33-million children under the age of five are malnourished.
In a statement issued on the sidelines of the FAO's h igh-l evel conference on w orld f ood s ecurity in Rome yesterday, the organisation said the signatories to the initiative included Agra , FAO, the International Fund for Agricultural Development ( Ifad) and the WFP .
Annan said there was an urgent need to focus on raising agricultural productivity.
More adaptable new crop varieties, improved access to seeds and fertilisers, and environmentally sustainable integrated pest-management practices were needed to help reduce post-harvest losses, Annan said.
He called for improved rural infrastructure , saying it would need to be bolstered by bold policies to help transform smallholder agriculture.
Unlocking the potential of agriculture in Africa was a challenge but it could be done, said FAO d irector- general Jacques Diouf.
This initiative was an important contribution to reducing the number of hungry people in sub-Saharan Africa by boosting food production and productivity, and improving the livelihoods of millions of people in rural areas.
"FAO will actively participate in this important initiative by assisting in stimulating local food production, providing technical input, and developing new agricultural investments."
Agra would develop and promote higher-yielding, locally adapted seeds, soil fertility options, water management systems and market development to aid smallholder farmers.
It would also advance pro-poor policies to cataly se farm productivity growth in the breadbasket zones.
"We hope to spur a green revolution in Africa which respects biodiversity and the continent's distinct regions and great variety of crops -- from millet and sorghum in the Sahel, to the root and tuber belts that cut across humid west Africa, to maize in the high and lowland areas of eastern and s outhern Africa," said Annan.
FAO said the partnership would seek to link local food production to food needs in the regions, and work across Africa's major agricultural growing areas -- or agro-ecological zones -- to create opportunities for smallholder farmers.
At the same time, careful environmental monitoring and the conservation of biodiversity, water and land would be given high priority.
The agreement has also called for the co-ordination and sharing of agricultural development innovations.
It said this should be done across diverse ecological zones and associated crops.
At the country level, the partnership will support the efforts of governments and work with farmers and other stakeholders to boost agricultural productivity and farm incomes.
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