President Macky Sall is taking part in the Africa Food Systems Summit, taking place September 5-8, 2023 in Dar es Salaam, the former capital of Tanzania. At the opening of this meeting, the Head of State proposed four necessary changes for the transformation of African agricultural potential and the achievement of the continent’s food sovereignty objectives.

After participating in the first African Climate Summit held in Nairobi, the Kenyan capital, from September 4 to 6, 2023, Macky Sall headed for Dar es Salaam, the former capital of Tanzania, where he is taking part in the Africa Food Systems Summit (Afmass Tanzania Food Summit and Expo).

At the opening of this meeting, the President of the Republic identified four changes to be made in order to transform Africa’s agricultural potential and achieve the continent’s food sovereignty objectives. “If we want to transform our potential and achieve our food sovereignty objectives, we must resolutely initiate the necessary changes. I see at least four: first, further promote research, improve agricultural mechanization and water control, and intensify the use of modern methods and technologies, including for the local processing of products. Secondly, increase the areas operated well beyond small family farms, hence the need for land developments which reconcile the legitimate needs of family farming and those essential to agribusiness which allows large-scale production.

Thirdly, install product storage and preservation equipment to avoid post-harvest losses, and open up production areas to markets, by strengthening internal transport and cross-border interconnection infrastructure, in order to facilitate access to markets, especially at the time of the Zlecaf (African Continental Free Trade Zone: editor’s note). Fourthly, finally, support smallholders, especially women and young people, with support and financing adapted to their needs,” said President Sall.

To do this, the President recommends “overcoming the still stubborn prejudices which perceive agriculture as an activity for the poor, which we only do because we cannot find anything else to do. On the contrary, the current crisis is a brutal reminder that agriculture, brought up to modern standards, is a noble profession, a source of opportunities and social accomplishment.

This means that today more than ever, it is urgent to break with the prejudices and practices which continue to expose our countries to food insecurity, to initiate a real agricultural revolution which, beyond resilience, will lead to food sovereignty and the conquest of world markets”.

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Regarding the Summit on Food Systems in Africa, he considers that the “question is vital and topical”. And to explain that “at all times, everything relating to agriculture and food security has been a top priority.

This is even more evident today for our countries facing the combined effects of climate change, the Covid-19 pandemic and a major war.

The figures speak for themselves: according to United Nations estimates, more than 750 million people, including nearly 240 million Africans, live today in food insecurity.”

For him, “hunger in Africa is not only a concern, it is also and above all a great paradox for a continent of 1.4 billion inhabitants and 30 million km2, with 60% unexploited arable land of the planet and abundant water resources.  With such immense potential, Africa should neither go hungry nor thirsty. On the contrary, it should be able to feed itself and help feed the world, instead of continuing to import, and worse still, to depend on aid to satisfy most of its food needs.”

The share of agriculture in the budget increased to 12%

Twenty years ago, recalls Mr. Sall, “our countries made a commitment, in the Maputo Declaration of July 2003, to allocate at least 10% of the national budget to agriculture”. But, he considers, “the achievement of this objective requires above all a voluntary choice which combines action with words”. And he gives Senegal as an example. “We have increased the share of agriculture in the general investment budget to 12%, and increased the financing of the seasonal agricultural campaign by 75% in two years in order to accelerate our progress towards food sovereignty.

Thus, he underlines, “Senegal organized, last January, the Dakar Agricultural II, in collaboration with the AfDB after the Dakar I in October 2015.

In a context of global crisis, Dakar II put the objective of food sovereignty back at the heart of the continental agenda, with the participation of 34 heads of state and government; a record for a sectoral summit.

In three days, we were able to mobilize $30 billion to help boost agricultural production and food trade on the continent. Since then, this amount has increased to $72 billion.

Macky also mentioned that: “The Joint Declaration on Food Security, resulting from the United States-Africa Summit in December 2022, goes in the same direction as the agricultural Dakar II, with two main objectives: in the short term, it is a question of responding to the immediate needs of our countries in terms of importing fertilizers and food products under normal market conditions.

In the medium and long term, we want to work with the American side and other partners to sustainably improve investment in agricultural production on the continent.

In accordance with the mandate that the Chairman-in-Office of the African Union entrusted to me, the task force that I had set up for the follow-up to the Washington Declaration during my term as head of the Union, continues consultations with the American side.”

By Dialigué FAYE / dialigue@lequotidien.sn

  • Translation by Ndey T. SOSSEH