African leaders, partners commit $30bn to agriculture

African leaders, businesses, and major development partners have pledged more than US $30 billion in investments to increase production, income and employment for smallholder farmers and local African agriculture businesses over the next 10 years.

The historic investments represent just the first wave of support for the new “Seize the Moment” campaign, one backed by the African Union Commission, the new Partnership for Africa’s Development, NEPAD, the African Development Bank  (AfDB), the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA), among others.
The collective pledges, made in Nairobi, Kenya, at the opening of the 6th African Green Revolution Forum , AGRF, represents the largest package of financial commitments to the African agricultural sector to date.

Backed by the broadest coalitions ever assembled in support of food production on the continent, the gathering attracted more than 1,500 influential figures from 40 countries to broker new agricultural initiatives.
Kenyan President, Uhuru Kenyatta,  officially opened the forum with an announcement that his government will invest  US$200 million to at least 150,000 young farmers and young agriculture entrepreneurs can gain access to markets, finance, and insurance.
Kenyatta, who is Chair of the African Peer Review Mechanism called for a continental scorecard that will measure and track the commitments to agriculture transformation and ensure they translate into action.

Gayle Smith, Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), set the tone for the day with a call for investors and donors to be bold and do their part to achieve “A Food-Secure 2030”.

Already, the US government has invested more than $6.6 billion in global food security and nutrition efforts through its Feed the Future initiative.

This commitment is now locked in for the long-term following approval in July of the bipartisan Global Food Security Act legislation.

Smith said the initiative “signals the US government's enduring commitment to global food security and nutrition and is the largest development authorization the US Congress has made in a decade.”  
While African agriculture has seen significant progress in the last 10 years, the “Seize the Moment” campaign is a frank acknowledgment that much more is needed for African countries to achieve inclusive economic development—and ultimately realize the international community’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The campaign is a decisive push for the political, policy, and financial commitments essential to transforming Africa’s agricultural sector. The goal: a new era of business opportunities for the 70 percent of the African population that depend on farming for food and income, yet too often face poverty and poor nutrition.
The African Development Bank, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, The Rockefeller Foundation, Kenya Commercial Bank (KCB) Group, OCP Africa, World Food Programme, Yara International ASA, and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), are among agriculture investors and development partners who announced new financial and policy commitments.