Africa faces challenges in food security due to a number of reasons including, but not limited to climate change and insecurities such as terrorism and negative forces that destabilise it.
Prof Manasseh Nshuti, The Minister of State in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the East African Community, said this while he spoke at the celebrations of the Africa Day 2022, May 25.
In his remarks, he deemed it essential for African governments and the private sector to reflect on the food security issue on the continent and take measures to address it accordingly.
The State Minister stressed that it requires political will and mobilisation from Africans to collectively join efforts to fight against the causes of food security on the continent, adding that liberation has to be embraced in the economy.
“It requires us to upgrade how we cultivate, how we harvest and how we take the produce to the market. If we don’t, our liberation will be hard to manage because when people are hungry, a problem occurs in the country and in Africa in general,” he said.
During the event, there was a discussion reflecting the theme of Africa Day 2022, “Building Resilient and Inclusive African Food Systems: Tackling challenges of Nutrition and Climate Change.”
Amb Christine Nkulikiyinka, CEO of Rwanda Cooperation Initiative said that African countries should work together to address challenges hindering food systems.
“Our contexts are similar; our cultures are similar. We are more likely to develop policies that are more sustainable and are easily implementable than going outside the continent. It also helps us to develop the sense of togetherness and Pan-Africanism,” she said.
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Eric Rwigamba, Director General of the Financial Sector Development at the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning suggested putting in place support systems of capacity building as a solution to help farmers know when to plant and harvest.
He also recommended making information available for farmers, and supporting that with other agriculture infrastructure and having all programs that will make production possible in terms of irrigation, land consolidation, terracing and planting can have an impact.
He noted that in case farmers need better seeds and fertilisers to use, governments should work on distributing them on time and at the right price, adding that establishing financial mechanisms and insurances that support farmers can also be considered in building resilient and inclusive African food systems.
Africa Day is observed annually to commemorate the founding of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), which was created on 25 May 1963. It was the precursor of the African Union (AU).
The day provides an opportunity to celebrate the socio-economic achievements of the continent and in line with the African Union Theme for the year 2022, the development agency of the African Union Auda-Nepad, held an online celebration focusing on moving forward this agenda.
During a media briefing on Monday, Protais Musoni, chairperson of Pan African Movement-Rwanda said: “The fight against hunger is one of the battles Africa has been losing; every year, additional millions of Africans go hungry, food importation is on increase, and malnutrition remains endemic. As we celebrate what we have achieved, Africans need to earnestly reflect on how a continent that possesses the largest fertile arable land cannot feed itself.”