A look at the Africa Agriculture Status Report for 2022

At the time of writing, Rwanda was due to host the African Green Revolution Forum from 5 to 9 September, an annual event bringing together the continent’s political and opinion leaders to reflect on the state of Africa’s food security and its agricultural transformation.

-  Dr Tinashe Kapuya

The Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa was set to launch its next institutional strategy, to be implemented from 2023 to 2027, at the same event.

The Africa Agriculture Status Report for 2022 (AASR2022), led and authored by distinguished scholars such as Prof Robert Richardson, Dr Edward Mabaya, and Prof Thomas Jayne, among others, was also expected to be launched in the same week. The AASR2022 titled 'Accelerating African Food Systems Transformation' underscores the urgent need for the continent's agriculture sector to achieve inclusive, equitable, sustainable and resilient growth. At the same time, it needs to respond to crises such as climate change, rising global energy, food and fertiliser prices, and food insecurity. The AASR2022 builds on the commitments that Africa made at the UN Food Systems Summit 2021 and the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference, and sets the scene for deeper introspection into the policy implications for sub-Saharan African countries.

ANSWERING BURNING QUESTIONS

In line with these commitments, the AASR2022 is set to answer some important questions, including:

• What are the exogenous factors shaping Africa's food systems landscape?

• What is at stake for Africa if the challenges faced are not addressed?