Food insecurity is an escalating crisis on the African continent. Many of its most vulnerable people are reliant on emergency aid, which does little to address the systemic causes of widespread hunger.
For Pierre Kremer, International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), Regional office, Deputy Regional Director, the Africa Zero Hunger campaign represents something completely different: a shift from short-term fixes to investment in long-term solutions.
Solutions backed by local knowledge
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With 48 Red Cross and Red Crescent National Societies, more than 16,000 local branches, and more than 16 million volunteers deeply embedded in communities, Kremer and his colleagues have a unique vantage point on how hunger is lived and solved in Africa.
When Kremer talks about tackling food insecurity, he doesn't start with aid shipments or top-down plans. He starts with people.
"The goal is to give a voice to communities that are well placed to 'engineer' or co-create solutions to meet their multifaceted needs based on their local knowledge," he explains.
In this way, the Africa Zero Hunger campaign represents a "solutions bank", a growing collection of proven, community-led initiatives that show what works against food insecurity on the ground. From livestock sharing schemes in Rwanda to Mother's Clubs in Nigeria, these solutions are practical, replicable, and already changing lives.
"This campaign reflects a post-aid approach, focusing on durable solutions generated by the impacted communities themselves," says Kremer.
Building a coalition of the willing
But for these local solutions to move beyond a single village or district, they need more than recognition. They need investment, partnerships, and political will.
"The objective is to create a coalition of the willing, from local communities to national governments and global actors, working alongside African institutions, the private sector, and UN agencies to ramp up efforts toward Zero Hunger," Kremer explains.
The first phase of the campaign is already underway, with case studies, media assets, and community stories being documented across six priority countries: Kenya, Ethiopia, Mali, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Zimbabwe, and Nigeria.
The mid-term plan is to expand this into an online multi-agency platform. This digital hub would act as the home of the solutions bank, a space where the National Societies can deposit solutions, and where donors, investors, and partners can connect directly with them.
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What's missing is not ideas, but the support to take them further. Creating a bank of solutions offers a ready-made platform for governments, donors, and partners to back what works, directly at community level. For Kremer, this will allow us to move beyond aid and build the foundations for lasting food security across Africa.
Ways to get involved
You can help take community-led solutions from one community to many. Donors can support Africa Zero Hunger directly and help turn local solutions into wider change. And if giving isn't an option, you can still make an impact by sharing these stories, sparking conversations, and adding your voice to the call for Zero Hunger in Africa.
Join the Zero Hunger Campaign:
Africa Zero Hunger: United for durable solutions
Confronting alarming food insecurity trends in Africa: An expert's view
From short-term aid to long-term strength: Launching Africa Zero Hunger
