President of the Africa Development Bank (AfDB), Dr. Akinwunmi Adesina has stated that Africa’s food and agricultural industry will be worth an estimated $1 trillion by 2030.
He told this to attendees at the Norman E. Borlaug Dialogue organized by the World Food Prize Foundation in Des Moines, Iowa.
Adesina explained that 34 African leaders had given their endorsement to country food and agriculture delivery compacts, leading to the development of action-oriented plans with clear outcomes.
These compacts are aimed at ensuring food security and unleashing the full agricultural potential of the continent within a five-year timeframe.
This aligns with the central tenets of the Bank’s Feed Africa strategy, initiated in 2016.
Adesina also noted that, since its inception, the strategy has provided support to over 250 million individuals who have reaped the benefits of enhanced agricultural technologies.
Adesina mentioned that partners had pledged more than $70 billion to support the food compacts, while the Bank is poised to contribute $10 billion over the upcoming five years.
The President of the Bank emphasized that Dakar 2 project embodies the collective determination of African leaders to ensure the continent achieves self-sufficiency in food production.
One of these leaders, President Sahle-Work Zewde of Ethiopia, who attended the Borlaug Dialogue, declared,
- “As African leaders, we are all committed to self-sufficiency in food production.
- Today, Ethiopia, for the first time in its history, is self-sufficient in wheat production and is a wheat exporter to its neighbours.”
Backstory
Africa possesses 65% of the world’s untapped arable land, yet it heavily relies on food imports. African leaders are determined to achieve food self-sufficiency and transform into food-exporting nations.
It is recognized that by 2050, the global population is projected to reach nine billion, underscoring the urgency for Africa to enhance agricultural productivity in order to meet the growing demand for food.