Africa Food Systems Forum 2024: main program

 

2 - 6 September 2024. Kigali Rwanda. 

Africa Food Systems Forum 2024

The Africa Food Systems Forum is the world largest annual summit on agriculture and food systems on the continent.

Extracts of the main programme

03/09 DAY 1: CCOUNTABILITY, STATUS, AND POLICY IMPLICATIONS

The Africa Agriculture Status Report (AASR) 

See YouTube video recording @

• Presentation of the Report: AGRA (2024). Accelerating the Private Sector for Food Systems transformation in Africa (Issue 12). Nairobi, Kenya: AGRA. # 88 pp.
• Dr. Thomas Reardon, Professor, College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Michigan State University Moderator: 
• Dr . Roy Steiner, Senior Vice President, Food Initiative, The Rockefeller Foundation, AGRA Board Member
• Ms. Chema Triki – AASR Author 
• Dr. Simeon Ehui, Director-General, International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) Panel Discussion: 
• Hon. Rose Kayi Mivedor, Minister of Commerce, Crafts, and Local Consumption, Togo 
• Mr. Michael Shaw, Director, WellSping Development 
• Ms. Anna Riley, Managing Partner, Sofala Partners 
• Mr. Daniel Hailu, Executive Director, Mastercard Foundation 
• Mr. Jemery Awori, Group CEO, Ecobank Group 
• Ms. Michelle Gortan, CEO, Macdoch Foundation. Launch of the AASR report and official opening photo
• Dr. Agnes Kalibata, President, AGRA 
• Rt. Hon. Dr. Edouard Ngirente, Prime Minister of Rwanda 
• H.E. Josefa Sacko, Commissioner for Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy, and Sustainable Environment (ARBE), AUC

Resource: 

AGRA (2024). Accelerating the Private Sector for Food Systems transformation in Africa (Issue 12). Nairobi, Kenya: AGRA. # 88 pp.

Digitalization Roadmap on Food Systems

Digital technologies hold immense potential to transform agri-food systems across sub-Saharan Africa by significantly enhancing productivity and resilience, market access, supply chains, and financial inclusivity for small-scale producers. Although some progress has been made, many challenges persist, including fragmented initiatives and investments across the public, private, and social sectors, uncertain business models, inadequate digital and physical infrastructure, and lack of gender and social inclusion, which all hinder the widespread adoption and impact of digital agriculture solutions. We have a unique opportunity for digital transformation in agriculture due to growing mobile and internet penetration, innovative digital solutions, and growing leadership and policy support.

 
There is a need for coordinated roadmaps that align with national policies, identify and address ecosystem gaps, and prioritize and coordinate sustainable investments to fully realize digital agriculture’s potential. This session aims to gather key stakeholders to discuss the development and implementation of Digital Agriculture Roadmaps for African countries while drawing on insights from previous initiatives in Ethiopia, other SSA countries, and India and exploring pathways to enhance digital transformation in the agri-food sector across the continent.

Panel Discussion 1: Coordinating Digital Agricultural Initiatives and Investments

• Dr. Parmesh Shah, Global Lead for Rural Livelihoods & Agricultural Jobs, Agriculture, World Bank
• Mr. Stewart Collis, Senior Program Officer, Digital Solutions, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
• Ms. Brenda Mulele Gunde, Global Lead for ICT4D, IFAD
• Mr. Josh Woodward, Senior Digital Advisor, USAID
• Mr. Innocent Musabyimana, Chief Agriculture Technology Officer, AFDB
• Mr. Dayo Aduroja, Director, Youth and Innovation Africa, Heifer International
• Mr. Omundi Kasidhi, Digital Manager Africa, Yara
• Moderator: Mr. Kristofer Hamel, Agricultural Innovations Lead, President, Court of the United Arab Emirates

Panel Discussion 2: Building and Implementing Digital Agricultural Solutions & Public Infrastructure

• Keynote speaker: Hon. Paul Ingabire, Minister of ICT and Innovation, Rwanda
• Ms. Niriksha Shetty, CEO, Precision Development (PxD)
• Mr. Rikin Gandhi, CEO, Digital Green
• Dr. Rajeev Chawla, Strategic Advisor and Chief Knowledge Officer, Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Government of India
• Ms. Kameshwari Chandra, Chief Strategy Officer, Center for Digital Public Infrastructure, India
• Mr. Samuel Praveen Kumar, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Government of India
• Mr. Stewart Collis, Senior Program Officer, Digital Solutions, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
• Ms. Chen Hattav, Growing IL Ecosystem Development Manager, Israel Innovation Institute

04/09 DAY 2: NUTRITION, HEALTH, TRADE, AND MARKETS

Farmers’ Forum

This year’s Farmers’ Forum will bring farmers from Asia, Latin America, and Africa together to exchange experiences and share best practices regarding participation in food systems policies, access to financing and markets, and capacity to deliver healthy foods produced sustainably amid climate change and conflicts. This interactive discussion will give participants a broader picture of the progress made in the field about food systems transformation and how gaps and challenges can be addressed. AS INVITED Moderator • Dr. King-David Amoah, President of Farmers Organization Network, Ghana and of the Ghana Federation of Agricultural Producers (GFAP) Keynote Remarks: Farmers’ Forum for Food Systems Transformation • Ms. Elizabeth Nsimadala, President, Eastern Africa Farmers Federation (EAFF) • Ms. Esther Penuri, Asian Farmers’ Association for Sustainable Rural Development

Panel Discussion 1: Climate Finance 

• Mr. Kolyang Palabele, President, Pan-African Farmers’ Organization (PAFO), The Gambia 
• Mr. Ishmael Sunga, Chief Executive Officer, Southern African Confederation of Agricultural Unions (SACAU) 
• Ms. Ruramiso Mashumba, Regional Lead - Africa, Global Farmer Network (GFN), Zimbabwe • Ms. Juliana Kantegwa, Founder, Wood Valley Organics, Rwanda 
• Ms. Wangeci , Farmers Organization, Kenya 
• Mr. Foster Boateng, Deputy CEO – Operations, Tree Crop Development Authority (TCDA) 
• Dr. Lekan Tobe, Country Director Nigeria, Heifer Internationa
•  Hon. Allahoury Diallo - Minister Special Advisor to the President Niger Moderator: 
• Ms. Manes Ngoma, President, Farmers Union of Malawi

Panel Discussion 2: Best Practices from Africa 

• Mr. Stephen Muchiri, CEO, Eastern Africa Farmers Federation (EAFF) 
• Mr. Ibrahima Coulibaly, President, Network of Farmers’ Organizations and Agricultural Producers of West Africa (ROPPA) & President, PanAfrican Farmers Organization (PAFO) 
• Mr. Bagore Bathily, Managing Director, La Laiterie Du Berger, Senegal 
• Mr. Philip Kiriro, Chairman and Board Member, EAFF Co. Ltd, Kenya
• Dr. Sinare Yusufu Sinare, Chairman, SACAU, Tanzania 
• Dr. Olivier Kamana, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Resources, Rwanda 
• Dr. Athman Mravili, FAO Coordinator for Central Africa and Representative in Gabon, Sao Tome & Principe, and Cameroon • Prof. Godfrey NZAMUJO, Founder of SONGHAÏ Institute - Bénin

05/09 DAY 3: CLIMATE CHANGE AND FOOD SYSTEMS

PRIVATE SECTOR PLENARY: Food Systems 

The Bigger Picture As the engine of economic growth, a robust and vibrant private sector is vital to transform food systems on the continent. In Africa, the private sector has an immense potential to contribute directly to the achievement of Agenda 2030 of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the African Union’s Agenda 2063: The Africa We Want through basic pursuits, such as increasing productivity, creating jobs, and accelerating service delivery. This session will showcase success stories and scalable best practices, effective approaches to mobilizing resources by banks and non-bank financial institutions, including financial technology (fintech), and the potential role of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) in private sector development. This session will give voice to private sector experts who wish to share specific flagship initiatives in the area of production, processing, and marketing with demonstrated scalability and impact, as well as insights into the processes and partnerships involved in their initiatives’ success. 

• Mr. Ibrahima Cheikh Diong, United Nations Assistant Secretary-General (ASG) and Director General of the African Risk Capacity (ARC) Group. Keynote Speakers 
• H.E. Dr. Donald Kaberuka, Chairman and Managing Partner of SouthBridge & Senior Advisor at the IGC, Rwanda 
• H.E. Khalifa Al Kuwari, DG, Qatar Fund for Development Fireside Chat: 
• Dr. Claver Gatete, Executive Secretary, United Nations Economic Commission for Africa 
• Ms. Sanda Ojiambo, Assistant Secretary-General, United Nations Global Compact Kenya 
• Ms. Carla Montesi, EU Director for Green Deal and Digital Agenda, Directorate-General for International Partnerships, Belgium 
• Ms. Elizabeth Maruma Mrema, Assistant Secretary-General of the United Nations and Deputy Executive Director, UNEP

Panel Discussion: De-risking Systems 

• Ms. Diane Karusisi, CEO, Bank of Kigali 
• Dr. James Mwangi, CEO, Equity Group Holdings Limited 
• Ms. Maria Håkansson, CEO, Swedfund 
• Mr. Jules Ngankam, Group CEO, African Guarantee Fund 
• Ms. Delphine Traore, CEO, Allianz Africa & Chair, Board of Management of Allianz Africa & AGRA Board Member 
• Ms. Vera Songwe, Founder and Chair of Liquidity and Sustainability Facility & Co-chair of the High-Level Panel on Climate Finance 
• Mr. Fred Swaniker, Entrepreneur Founder, African Leadership Group 
• Mr. Samuel Ssenyimba, Senior Program Officer, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) 
• Dr. Leonard Mizzi, Head of Unit at the European Commission, Directorate-General (DG) for International Partnerships - Sustainable Agri-Food systems and Fisheries

Agri-innovation & Digitalization: Investments to Scale up Food Systems Transformation 

The session’s goal is to identify key actions to unlock investments and strengthen public-private sector collaborations in delivering digital technological innovations that will drive food system transformation at scale. The session will also highlight successful investment models, technical assistance and business development opportunities, and concrete cases in agriculture that provide replicable examples. A special focus will be on new initiatives for de-risking private sector investments to drive agricultural digitalization. The session will also serve as a call to action and facilitate direct interactions and relationship building between investors, agribusinesses, financial institutions, policymakers, and other stakeholders to promote a collaborative approach to the development of investment vehicles that support the large-scale transformation of food systems.

• Moderator: Dr. Enock Chikava, Director, Agricultural Delivery Systems, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Inspirations from Asia: 
• Mr. Veera Sekaran, Founder and Director, VertiVegies, Singapore Keynote 
• Mr. Samuel N’gan’ga, Manager Upstream and Advisory for Manufacturing, Agribusiness, and Services in East and Southern Africa, IFC Panelists: 
• Ms. Liz Wilson - Deputy CEO, Small Foundation
• Mr. Jehiel Oliver, Founder and CEO, Hello Tractor
• Mr. Sriram Bharatam, CEO and Founder, Kuza, Kenya 
• Mr. Albert Munyabugingo, Co-founder and CEO, Vuba Vuba Africa Ltd., Rwanda
• Mr. Ivan Shema, Founder, of 1000 Hills Products 
• Mr. Ken Akinwande, Head Digital , OCP 
• Mr. Kristofer

Digital Solutions for Production, Processing, E-marketing, and Food Waste Keynote 

• Dr. Strive Masiyiwa, Founder & Executive Chairman, Econet Group, Cassava Technologies & Econet Wireless and Co-Founder, Higherlife Foundation Panel: 
• Ms. Anu Adedoyin Adasolum, Co-Founder & CEO, Sabi 
• Mr. Ismael Belkhayat, CEO and Founder, Chari, Morocco 
• Ms. Adesuwa Ifedi, Senior Vice President of Africa Programs, Heifer International 
• Mr. Ralph Mupita, Group President and CEO, MTN, South Africa 
• Ms. Coura Sene, Regional Director, Wave Digital Finance 
• Ms. Daniel Whitley, Administrator, Foreign Agricultural Service, US Department of Agriculture 
• Dr. Catherine Nakalembe, Africa Director, NASA Harvest & Africa Food Prize Laureate Closing remarks: 
• Mr. Paul Garaycochea, Director, Sustainable Transformation of Supply Chains, Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), Germany

DAY 4: FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 6, 2024 THEME: DATA, DIGITAL AND CLIMATE CHANGE

Panel Session: Innovative Business Models to Successfully Drive Mechanization in Africa 

• Moderator: Ms. Melissa Pinfield, Executive Director, Just Rural Transition Secretariat, Meridian Institute Keynote Remarks: 
• Mr. Donal Brown, Associate Vice President, International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) Fireside chat: 
• Dr. Prof. Yanshui Zhao, Deputy Chairman, Chinese Association of Agriculture Machinery Manufacturers 
• Hon. Dr. Ildephonse Musafiri, Minister of Agriculture and Livestock Rwanda 
• Mr. Jehiel Oliver, Founder and CEO, Hello Tractor 
• Mr. Jaco Beyers, Managing Director Africa, John Deere 
• Mr. Paul Christopher Richards, CEO, AgLeaseCo, Zambia 
• Mrs. Patricia Amankwa Yeboah, Head of Agric Mechanization, CSIR Ghana 
• Mrs. Ruramiso Mashumba, Africa Lead, Global Farmer Network 
• Mr. Ibrahim Maigari, Technology Entrepreneur, Nigeria • Mr. Chris Brett, Lead Agribusiness Specialist, World Bank