By Morkporkpor Anku
Accra, May 29, GNA – The seventh African Leadership Forum (ALF) has ended in Accra with participants urging African countries to focus on agri-business rather than agriculture.
The Forum said agri-business encompassed agriculture and required a multifaceted approach across multiple stakeholders, including ministries beyond that of agriculture. Climate change.
Dr Emmanuel Maliti, an Economist, iReview Limited, presenting a statement at the end of the Forum, said the current and future effects of climate change were a wake-up call for Africa to reorient its agriculture development agenda.
The Forum was convened by Dr. Jakaya Kikwete, the ALF Patron and former President of the United Republic of Tanzania and AfCFTA Secretariat, and co-organized by the Institute of African Leadership for Sustainable Development (UONGOZI Institute).
“Many best practices that have transformed the African agriculture sector are available to learn from and scale up,” he said.
The one-and-a-half-day event on the theme: “Promoting Intra-Africa Trade to Unlock Agricultural Potential in Africa” sought to provide a space to share experiences and insights to facilitate a successful agricultural trade among African countries.
It highlighted Africa’s agricultural potential and opportunities emerging from climate change, sharing experiences and lessons on the obstacles (internal and international) in maximizing agricultural potential in Africa.
It is also to discuss the potential and obstacles to, as well as practical and realistic requirements for implementing AFCFTA within Africa’s agriculture context and identify priorities and roadmap for implementation of the agricultural trade perspective under the AFCFTA to realize its transformative economic objective.
He said interventions could include technological-based, from introducing country-specific technology and innovation in adoption (climate-smart technologies) to diversifying farming systems.
The Economist said complementary non-technology interventions include evidence-based policymaking, tapping climate change financing, and advocating for compensation from large polluters.
Mr Wamkele Mene, the Secretary General of AfCFTA Secretariat, said access to affordable agriculture financing was necessary to facilitate expanding private sector participation in the agriculture sector.
This requires policies that de-risk lending to the sector (formalising agricultural land, introducing land banks), and central banks role in facilitating carbon trade financing as well as incentivizing regional and local banks to syndicate large loan portfolios for the sector.
He said Africa could also consider incentivizing market entry for venture capital funding, insurance products, trade financing, and commodity markets.
He said the latter could start with commodities that Africa largely consumes and intermediary finances such as guarantees, savings and credit societies, investment banks serving the sector, and credit facilities that cater to the needs of women and youth, which have proven to accelerate access to finance in some African countries.
Dr. Jakaya Kikwete, the ALF Patron and former President of the United Republic of Tanzania, said countries needed to commit to trading among themselves, invest in knowledge exchange and eliminate trade barriers as among the means to accelerate rural communities’ participation in the regional and global value chains.
He said robust private sector capacity in responding to trade opportunities was also vital in transforming intra-Africa trade.
“Governments can identify, incentivize, and facilitate large private sector entities to invest in agriculture,” he said.
Dr Kikwete said a lot had been achieved but a lot more was needed to be done to increase agriculture production on the African continent.
He said if the continent had to promote intra-Africa trade, in the area of agriculture, stakeholders needed to take a look at the supply side.
He commended President Nana Akufo-Addo for accepting Ghana to host the Seventh Edition of the Forum.
GNA