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By Emmanuel Oloniruha<\/p>\n
Kigali<\/p>\n
Former President Goodluck Jonathan, has challenged African leaders to move beyond declarations and commitments on agricultural transformation and take concrete action to deliver greater productivity, food security, jobs and prosperity for the continent.<\/p>\n
Mr Ikechukwu Eze , the Special Adviser to Jonathan, in statement made available to newsmen on Wednesday in Abuja, quoted the former president making the at an African Agricultural Technology Foundation (AATF) Investors Forum held in Kigali on the sidelines of the African Food Systems Forum.<\/p>\n
Speaking earlier at a youth-centred event themed \u2018Igniting Youth Food Systems Leadership\u2019, Jonathan urged Africa to encourage young people by challenging them to embrace and invest in agri-food systems, while providing appropriate incentives to support their participation and innovation.<\/p>\n
Jonathan who is also the AATF Goodwill Ambassador for Agricultural Technology, said Africa\u2019s agricultural transformation must no longer remain confined to policy frameworks and political commitments.<\/p>\n
He described agriculture as foundational to the continent\u2019s future.<\/p>\n
According to him, Africa\u2019s food security, industrialisation, youth employment and resilience to climate change are all closely tied to the performance of its agricultural sector.<\/p>\n
\u201cPut simply, if Africa is to achieve the growth, prosperity, and development to which it aspires, agriculture must be at the center of our efforts,\u201d he said<\/p>\n
Jonathan noted that African leaders had already demonstrated political commitment to agricultural transformation through continental frameworks including the African Union\u2019s Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) and the Malabo Declaration.<\/p>\n
He said that the challenge now was to translate those commitments into measurable investments, policies and programmes that reach farmers and generate tangible results.<\/p>\n
\u201cAfrica\u2019s food systems stand at a critical crossroads,\u201d Jonathan said, pointing to increasingly frequent and severe climate shocks, rapid population growth, limited economic opportunities for young people, and persistent gaps in storage, processing and market access.<\/p>\n
Jonathan said that addressing those challenges requires stronger partnerships among governments, research institutions, the private sector, farmer organisations, development partners, donors and investors.<\/p>\n
He also highlighted the importance of agricultural technology in accelerating transformation, arguing that proven innovations must be taken beyond laboratories and pilot projects and scaled to reach farmers across the continent.<\/p>\n
He said his experience as President of Nigeria reinforced his conviction that sustained investment in agriculture could generate jobs, increase household incomes and strengthen food security.<\/p>\n
He explained that the conviction led him to accept AATF\u2019s invitation to serve as its Goodwill Ambassador for Agricultural Technology.<\/p>\n
Jonathan commended AATF for its work over the past two decades in advancing agricultural technologies and supporting the policy and regulatory environments necessary for innovation to be adopted and scaled.<\/p>\n
He called for continued public-private collaboration to ensure that proven technologies reach farmers while investment is mobilised to develop the next generation of agricultural solutions.<\/p>\n
\u201cAATF\u2019s next decade will be shaped by two priorities that must advance together: scaling technologies that have already been proven to reach farmers\u2019 fields, and developing the next generation of solutions for our farmers,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
He also urged investors and development partners attending the forum to see themselves not merely as participants, but as partners in Africa\u2019s agricultural transformation.<\/p>\n
\u201cNeither can succeed without capital and partners willing to support an African institution with a verifiable track record,\u201d Jonathan said, urging investors to consider how their capital, expertise and networks could support AATF\u2019s priorities.<\/p>\n
He said the investor forum should mark the beginning of sustained engagement between AATF and potential partners as the organisation seeks to mobilise resources for its priorities over the next five to ten years.<\/p>\n
Jonathan\u2019s intervention reinforces a growing imperative across Africa: the continent has articulated the vision for agricultural transformation; the task now is to finance it, implement it and deliver results at scale.<\/p>\n
As Africa confronts the combined pressures of food insecurity, climate change, population growth and youth unemployment, he said agriculture must be treated not simply as a sector, but as a central engine of the continent\u2019s economic transformation and development.<\/p>\n
The theme of the AATF Investors Forum with over 5,000 participants from over 50 countries is \u201cInvesting in Africa\u2019s Agri-Food Systems.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
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