*Malabo, Equatorial Guinea -25 June 2014: *The African Agribusiness Forum,
held ahead of the 23rdOrdinary Session of the Assembly of African Union
Heads of State and Government on Sunday the 22nd of June 2014 was meant to
enhance private sector engagement and inclusive agribusiness transformation
in Africa.
The Summit is being held under the theme, “Transforming Africa’s
agriculture for shared prosperity and improved livelihoods; harnessing
opportunities for inclusive growth and sustainable development,†and is
also being held in the 2014 AU Year of Agriculture and Food and Nutrition
Security and the commemoration of the 10 year anniversary since the
Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) was adopted.
Commissioner Tumusiime said the last decade of CAADP implementation, has
redefined and reshaped the critical path to the attainment of Africa`s
agricultural transformation objectives.
Mrs. Tumusiime informed the Forum that the recent AU Joint Conference of
Ministers of Agriculture, Rural Development, Fisheries and Aquaculture,
held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, from 1st to 2nd May 2014 adopted a
Resolution endorsing seven Africa Accelerated Agricultural Growth and
Transformation Goals (3AGTGs) for 2025 for consideration by the AU Heads of
State and Government, at their Malabo Summit.
The joint conference recommended among other things the need to *enhance
Public-Private Partnerships and Investment Financing for African
Agriculture and called on stakeholders to *establish and/or strengthen
inclusive public-private partnerships for at least five (5) priority
agricultural commodity value chains with a strong linkage to smallholder
agriculture and to strengthen the capacities of domestic apex private
sector intermediary institutions for inclusive facilitation and
coordination to ensure engagement of the private sector in CAADP
implementation.
‘’This forum will, therefore, provide an opportunity for men, women and
youth stakeholders in the agribusiness sector to discuss and develop
concrete strategies for the realization of these recommendations,†she
said. `
In a key note address, the new AUC Head of Division of Agriculture and Food
Security Mr. Boaz Keizire, highlighted the key opportunities and challenges
for enhancing Africa’s agribusiness value chains and the outcomes of the AU
Joint Conference of Ministers of Agriculture, Rural Development and
Aquaculture.
The opening session was also attended by AUC Commissioners for Trade and
Industry and Political Affairs, T.E Fatima Acyl and Alcha Abdullahi,
respectively.