Top African Policymakers Address Agricultural Policies Needed to End Hunger and Achieve Food Security

Meeting Convened by AGRA Focuses on Policies for an African Green Revolution

Nairobi, Kenya, 27 June, 2008 -- As the world grapples with the food crisis, senior policy makers in Africa are developing appropriate policies to achieve a Green Revolution that will rapidly raise agricultural productivity for small-scale farmers in Africa. More than 90 senior policy makers and leaders from the private sector, academia, civil society and farmers organizations convened early this week to identify priority policies and institutions needed to achieve a uniquely African Green Revolution.

Representatives from 15 African countries, as well as others from Europe, the United States and Asia, participated in the two-day meeting convened by the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA), a partnership-based organization dedicated to improving the lives and livelihoods of Africa's small-scale farmers.

"Our goal is to end Africa's perpetual food crisis and to do so by mobilizing the political will and assisting countries in the development of policies that will enable Africa's smallholder farmers to grow exponentially more food and end hunger," said AGRA President Dr. Namanga A. Ngongi. "The vision, passion, and strategic directions shared here will help guide the development of these essential policies."

Underscoring the need for a policy action agenda for Africa, Hon. William Ruto, Kenya's Minister for Agriculture and Chairman of the African Council of Ministers of Agriculture, said, "The current world-wide food crisis has provided a wake up call for the policy makers to reorient their planning process to provide viable and sustainable solutions… [for] a green revolution which will dramatically increase Agricultural Productivity and lift the bulk of our population out of poverty."

The meeting addressed policies in four critical areas: seed and fertilizer markets; finance and risk management; product markets, strategic grain reserves and regional trade; and land tenure and other social issues. It also discussed how to build the capacity of African policy analysts and institutions that will support evidence-based policy development.

"The center of debate on policies for African agriculture needs to shift from Washington to Africa; and African countries, policy makers and stakeholders must lead the way," said Dr. Akin Adesina, AGRA's Vice President of Policy and Partnerships. "By building African policy development capacity, and working with the New Partnership for Africa's Development, we are laying the basis for sound evidence-based policies that will rapidly transform incentives for smallholder farmers, the great majority of whom are women working less than a hectare of land."

"Capacity building to develop appropriate policies for the Green Revolution must be holistic, consider the entire value chain, and take a long-term view," said Dr. Harris Mule, Chancellor of Kenyatta University, Kenya, who also co-chaired the meeting.

Participants recommended a range of possible policy responses needed to achieve an African Green Revolution, noting that no one-size-fits-all policies will work, and emphasizing the need to recognize the diversity of African countries and agricultural systems.

Among the policies recommended were:

• Policies that specifically and intentionally benefit small-scale farmers;
• Policies that support market development, including through the rapid scaling-up of networks of rural input shops known as "agro-dealers," who are able to get seeds, fertilizers and other farm inputs to remote rural areas;
• Policies that increase farmers' and agro-dealers' access to affordable credit and loans;
• Policies which, when appropriate, promote "smart" subsidies that enable poor smallholder farmers to access high quality seeds and fertilizers and other farm inputs;
• Policies that ensure that governments invest in public goods such as rural roads, irrigation, electricity, agricultural research and improved extension services;
• Land tenure policies that secure the rights of small-holder farmers, especially women who generally have more limited rights to land ownership;
• Policies that stabilize food prices for farmers and consumers;
• Risk-mitigation policies, such as weather-indexed crop insurance -- particularly important given projected negative impacts of climate change on African agriculture.

Participants also recommended that African countries and regions establish policy centers of excellence that would develop increased capacity in data collection, statistics and analysis, in close collaboration with African governments. Such centers would provide African countries with sound policy frameworks and build trust in policy formulation.

Dr. Praghu Pingali, Head of Agricultural Policy and Statistics, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, said, "African governments will need better data and statistics to improve policy decision making. Ensuring that appropriate monitoring and evaluation systems are in place is critical for assessing the impacts of policies on agricultural productivity, food security, rural employment and rural income."

Throughout the two days, participants expressed the need to strengthen partnerships.

Prof. Richard Mkandawire, Agriculture Adviser for NEPAD, said, “Partnership with all stakeholders is the way forward. NEPAD will work with AGRA more intensely in addressing policy bottlenecks… this gathering was an important first step in charting an agenda for action and greater focus on home-grown solutions to the continent’s food situation in coming years.”

AGRA’s Dr. Ngongi emphasized that "many things need to be done, but cannot be done by one institution. We need to work in partnership, and have governments take the lead in putting together the policies for a Green Revolution. We at AGRA will continue to seek out the views of our partners, from farmers in the field to Presidents and Ministers of Agriculture, as we work together to boost the yield, sustainability and income of smallholder farmers."

As Mr. Peniel Lyimo, the Permanent Secretary of Agriculture and Food Security, Tanzania, said, "The future could be bright for African farmers if the recommendations from the convening are implemented. Policy is everything.”

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About the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA)
AGRA is a dynamic partnership working across the African continent to help millions of small-scale farmers and their families lift themselves out of poverty and hunger. AGRA programmes develop practical solutions to significantly boost farm productivity and incomes for the poor while safeguarding the environment. AGRA advocates for policies that support its work across all key aspects of the African agricultural value chain ­from seeds, soil health and water to markets and agricultural education.

AGRA's Board of Directors is chaired by Kofi A Annan, former Secretary-General of the United Nations. Dr Namanga Ngongi, former Deputy Executive Director of the World Food Programme, is AGRA's president. With support from The Rockefeller Foundation, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the UK's Department for International Development and other donors, AGRA works across sub-Saharan Africa and maintains offices in Nairobi, Kenya, and Accra, Ghana.