FAO Regional Conference for Africa

Statement by FAO General Director 

José Graziano da Silva(L) at the 

28th FAO conference on 

March 27, 2014 in Tunis.

Copyright©FAO.

24-28 March 2014 Tunis, Tunisia. FAO in collaboration with the Government of Tunisia convened the 28th Session of the Regional Conference for Africa. The Conference brought together ministers of agriculture and senior government officials from FAO Member countries in the Region as well as members of the Civil Society and partners.

Delegates discussed issues relating to the current state and perspectives of food and agriculture in Africa. These included:

• The African youth in the food sector and rural development
• The State of food and agriculture in the region and implementation of the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) with a special focus on small farmers and family farming.
• The follow-up to the High-level Meeting of African and international leaders "Towards African Renaissance: Renewed Partnership for Unified Approach to End Hunger in Africa by 2025 under the CAADP Framework”.

Provisional Agenda [PDF]
Information Note [PDF]
Side events
In the Media

Related:

21/03/2014 - A two days consultative meeting with Non-State Actors (NSA) was held as an integral part of the regional conference, More than 50 representatives of international, regional and national Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) based in Africa discussed priority issues related to the development of agriculture and rural areas in Africa.

In her opening remarks, Ms Elisabeth Atangana, Vice President of the Panafrican Farmers Organizations (PAFO) emphasized the importance of the CSO meeting. “Our task to influence the policy debates related to food security for a world free of hunger is huge but not impossible. We really thank FAO for providing us with this opportunity to voice our concerns and effectively contribute to its decisions making on choices leading to the eradication of hunger in the world”, she said.

First six countries to benefit from Africa-led fund
The Central African Republic, Ethiopia, Malawi, Mali, Niger and South Sudan signed agreements in Tunis with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) to receive $2 million each from the Africa Solidarity Trust Fund. The trust fund, which is housed at FAO, was originally proposed in 2012 by President Denis Sassou Nguesso of the Republic of the Congo, during the previous Regional Conference for Africa in Brazzaville. The Fund was launched officially in June 2013 with a funding package of $30 million from Equatorial Guinea. Additional funding from Angola ($10 million) and a group of civil society organizations in the Republic of the Congo have brought the total amount to $40 million. Cameroon has also pledged to add to the fund and other countries are expected to join in the coming months.