AfDB Delegation Makes Key Presentation At the High Level Conference in Abuja

9 March 2010
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African Development Bank (Abidjan)
press release

Abuja — The Bank hosted a lunch on the first day of the conference to present the Programme for Post-Harvest Losses Reduction in Africa 2010-2014 (PHLP). The Programme is expected to play a key role for the development of the agro-industry and agribusiness sector in Africa. The lunch was attended by over 300 senior policy makers, development partners, representatives of financial institutions and the private sector.

The PHLP is a five-year programme with a total indicative cost of USD 1,692 million. Within this programme, the bank's intervention will be focussed on four main areas including policy formulation and institutional strengthening, rural infrastructure, Technologies for Post Harvest Loss reduction and value addition and market development.

The presentation also highlighted the importance of Post-Harvest Losses (PHL) as a major limitation for African agriculture development. For example, the annual quantitative PHL of cereal grains, roots and tuber crops, fruits and vegetables, meat, milk and fish in Africa is estimated at around 100 million tons with a monetary value of USD 48 billion.

The presentation was made during the High-Level Conference on the development of agribusiness and agro-industries in Africa (HLCD-3A), which is taking place from the 8th to the 10th of March 2010 in Abuja, Nigeria. The Bank's delegation is led by K. El Kheshen (Vice President) and includes Messrs. A. Abou-Sabaa (Director), C. Ojukwu (Manager), L. Sanchez (Agro-Industry Expert), U. Boysen (Agro-Industry Specialist), M. Niang (Manager), F. Ntamu (Private Sector Specialist).

The Bank co-organizes the Conference together with UNIDO, FAO, IFAD, African Union and the Government of Nigeria. The aim of HLCD-3A is to convene African Heads of State and Governments, Ministers and senior policy makers, as well as senior representatives of financial institutions, to consider and endorse specific recommendations to enhance the role of agribusiness and agro-industries in Africa.

The conference was officially opened on Monday 8 March 2010 by the Achike Udenwa, Federal Minister of Commerce and Industry of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and Abby Sayyadi Ruma, Federal Minister of State for Agriculture and Water Resources of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

During the first day of the conference discussions have started on the African Agribusiness and Agro-industries Development Initiative (3ADI). The 3ADI comprises a programme framework and associated financial modalities through which the public and private sectors can mobilize resources for investment in the agri-food sector development in Africa.

Contacts

Senvyraj Maistry

Read the original article on African Development Bank (AfDB).

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