Status of food security and prospects for agricultural development in Africa

This review of the African agriculture sector reveals the unchallenged prominence of the sector in the economies of most African countries, in terms of its contribution to GDP, export earnings and employment. Accelerating agricultural growth in African countries is crucial not only for achieving food security and reducing hunger but also for generating employment and trade. Almost all African countries, with varying degrees of commitment and success, have identified food security as an important policy goal. The African Union (AU) is concerned by the fact that, despite this commitment, too many Africans continue to be food insecure.Major challenges to the realisation of food security in Africa include high poverty rates, resurgent conflicts and political upheavals, poor infrastructure, the HIV/AIDS pandemic, high external debts, soil degradation, increasing water scarcity and poor water use management; desertification; and climate change.In conclusion, the AUC suggests the following recommendations:<B>resource mobilisation:</B> inadequate, unstable and delayed funding for agriculture is a major constraint. The document calls upon AU Member States to honour their commitment to allocating at least 10 percent of their budgets to developing the agriculture and rural sectors. It further urges development partners to make concrete efforts towards the target of 0.7 percent of GNP as ODA, especially to the agriculture sector<B>High Panel on Food Security in Africa:</B> improved coordination of agricultural and food security issues and programmes is strongly advocated. It is therefore recommended to create a High Panel on Food Security in Africa to help with coordinating these issues. The respective mandate will be to: serve as the forum and platform for exchanges on all issues concerning food security in Africaprovide advice and support required to accelerate the establishment of the comprehensive and effective Early Warning System so as to make it the Panel’s preferential tool addressing food crises in Africaprovide advice and support required for the promotion of the leading projects of AUC/NEPAD with a focus on food securitypromote strategies for the development of agricultural production in Africa as well as the assistance needed for fund raising and implementation of accompanying measures for eradicating poverty and food insecurity in rural and urban areaspromote and defend Africa’s interests by serving as a link between the continental and global levels.