AGRA

1. AFP Winner announcement and awards dinner

Tinotenda Mhiko, CEO of the Agricultural and Rural Development Authority (ARDA) of Zimbabwe, was named the winner of the 2024 Africa Food Prize, receiving a $100,000 award for his groundbreaking leadership and innovation in advancing food security through strategic irrigation initiatives, which is revolutionizing Zimbabwe’s food systems.

In his acceptance speech, Mr. Mhiko stated, “I have worked will all classes of farmers over 15 years to improve productivity. Over time I have found that the first step to achieving this is innovation. We have implemented impactful models alongside the use of technological innovations which have helped achieve this.”

2. ⁠Investing in Regenerative agriculture

The Investing in Regenerative Food Systems session focused on the principles and practices of regenerative agriculture, presenting practical solutions to address global challenges such as climate change and environmental degradation.

The discussion highlighted best practices, lessons learned, and models that had been successfully scaled and replicated to produce transformative outcomes. Topics covered included sustainable farming techniques, improving soil health, nature-based solutions, promoting biodiversity, and enhancing climate resilience.

Regenerative agriculture must consider the multiplicity of landscapes, integrating land use planning alongside biodiversity and conservation efforts. We should also view ecosystem health as a key factor in productivity, using metrics that go beyond just yield, Ms. Nancy Rapando, Co-coordinator, Policy Advisor, Policy and Advocacy, ISFFA.

Experts shared success stories and explored innovative policies that have supported regenerative food systems, offering insights into strategies aimed at enhancing resilience and food security in agriculture while ensuring landscape and ecosystem restoration in Africa.

3. ⁠Agribusiness Dealroom Knowledge Session: VALUE4HER, ITC, SheTrades, IAFN WAYA

The session featured a panel discussion that touched on key issues facing women entrepreneurs such as access to markets, finance and business development services. The forum brought together key figures representing women agripreneurs across the continent, chief among them the 2024 Women Agripreneur of the Year Award Overall Winner Affiong Williams.

In her remarks during the panel discussion, Affiong noted, “As women in agribusiness, we’ve proven we can build thriving ventures. To unlock further growth, we must deeply understand our market. This enables us to conceptualize products that resonate, attract investment, and propel our businesses forward.”

4. Youth Mini Hackathon

The youth had a session to refresh on day one and two’s learnings. This was a chance for Day one absentees to pitch and get feedback from the judges and mentors as they selected the best five team pitches. The youth presented their innovative ideas and received feedback from industry experts and peers, and the most promising solutions were awarded cash prizes ranging from $400 to $1000.

5. ⁠Media’s role in transforming Africa’s Food Systems

Media professionals from across the continent today had a session to highlight the role of the media industry in supporting and amplifying the African food systems narrative by amplifying key messages and generating conversations through mainstream and online media platforms. This session convened a broad group of communication and media specialists and practitioners from food systems, agriculture, agribusiness, environment, and rural development fields to discuss how to unpack Africa’s food systems’ potential, develop a positive narrative to attract investors, youth and women to the sector, and showcase best practices, lessons learned, and innovations in communicating or reporting on advances in food systems. The session also provided an opportunity to launch a Food Systems Media Platform, a continental fellowship, and a magazine on food systems transformation.

6. Food systems- The Bigger Picture

Today’s session on “Food Systems: The Bigger Picture” highlighted the urgent need for a more inclusive and collaborative approach to transforming agriculture across Africa. Discussions touched on blended finance, smart agriculture, and increased private-sector engagement.

Ms. Delphine Traore, CEO of Allianz Africa and Board Chair of AGRA, highlighted a critical challenge: while 95% of agricultural production in Africa is processed by agri-SMEs, only 25% of these enterprises have access to financing. Investors often shy away from the sector, viewing the African continent as a high-risk investment.

James Mwangi, CEO of Equity Bank Limited, outlined three key innovations that can be adopted to strengthen small-scale farming in Africa: Capacity-building initiatives to help farmers adapt to climate change, de-risking partnerships; reducing reliance on rain-fed agriculture.

7. South-South Triangular Cooperation

The session on South-South Cooperation emphasized the crucial role investment agencies play in strengthening agri-food systems. A key focus was on bridging existing gaps to make the sector more attractive to private investors, which is essential for scaling sustainable agricultural practices and boosting productivity. Empowering women through improved access to finance also emerged as a vital point of discussion.

Dr. Cheng Cheng highlighted an innovative climate-friendly loan program designed for small-scale farmers cultivating palm oil and other oil crops. This program ties funding to sustainable farming practices, promoting eco-friendly palm oil production in Africa. Such initiatives directly address sustainability challenges on the ground while supporting the development of greener food systems across the continent.

8. The Climate Clock – Scaling Food Systems and Climate Action – A Continental Agenda

Today’s session reaffirmed the critical need to integrate agriculture and food systems into climate action strategies across Africa. Building on momentum from key global events such as COP28 and the Africa Climate Summit, African countries are taking significant steps to align sustainable food systems with climate policies.

In today’s session, discussions revolved around scaling up the food systems and climate action agenda at the continental level. As African countries prepare for COP30, experts explored how nations can share progress and best practices for integrating food systems into their climate policies, investments, and national plans.

9. Investing in soil health to Feed a Continent

The panel highlighted that investments in soil health and land restoration could boost crop yields by 6-10% and slow biodiversity loss by 11% by 2050. Speakers called for action on the various declarations, emphasizing the need for collaboration, realism, and urgency in addressing the soil health and food security agenda. As Africa’s population continues to grow, so too must the commitment to innovative, sustainable solutions for feeding the continent’s future.

10. Market Structure a Major Challenge for the Ethiopian Coffee Sector

Official reports indicate that the Ethiopian coffee sector faces labour shortages due to the migration of young people to urban areas in search of better opportunities. This migration results in an ageing farming population, which poses challenges for the future sustainability of coffee farming.

11. The Accountability Room- Climate Clock

This session served as a space for drafting concrete proposals on scaling up the food systems and climate action agenda at the continental level. In preparation for COP30, African countries shared their progress and best practices for mainstreaming food systems into their climate policies, investments, and plans.

This session brought together the continent’s experts who are championing the work on the food systems and climate nexus to learn more about the latest developments, research findings, and current and future actions on this topic.

12. Investing in Regenerative food systems

This panel discussion focused on best practices, lessons learned, and delivery models with proven potential for replication and scale and capacity to produce transformative outcomes through practical regenerative agri-food solutions for global challenges such as climate change and environmental degradation. The sessions delve into the key principles and practices of regenerative agriculture, a powerful approach that promotes sustainability, resilience, and food security. Engage with farmers, researchers, and practitioners at the forefront of this field as they share their expertise and success stories on practical programs and policies.