Tuesday, January 31, 2023

Recordings January 2023

1 February 2023. Launch event Horizon Europe Launch Event – Focus on WP 2023-2024 and Africa Initiative II - recording available

This event provided information about opportunities for researchers and African research institutions through the Horizon Europe Work Programme for 2023-24. Under the “Africa Initiative II” a series of calls for proposals were published which are open to/requiring the participation of African scientists. The event will explain how to apply to these calls for proposals.

1 February 2023. IFPRI Seminar, The future of food and agriculture: Drivers and triggers for transformation - recording available

This policy seminar, co-organized by FAO, IFPRI, and the CGIAR Research Initiative on Foresight, was an opportunity to hear from the report’s authors and engage with a group of panel discussants on challenges facing food and agriculture, foresight approaches to exploring alternative future pathways, and opportunities for food system transformation, with particular focus on the Americas.

10 - 31 January 2023. The Ukraine Crisis and African Economies by AKADEMIYA2063
  • 10/01 Session IV – Ukraine Crisis and African Economies Wheat Sector Disruptions: Exposure, Contagion, and Effects on Income and Food Security - recording available.
  • 17/01 Session V – The Ukraine Crisis and African Economies Predicting Food Crop Production in times of Crisis: The Case of Wheat in South Africa - recording available
  • 24/01 Session VI – The Ukraine Crisis and African Economies Vegetable Oils Market Disruptions: The Income and Food Security Effects - recording available
  • 31/01 Session VII – The Ukraine Crisis and African Economie: Opportunities and Potential for the Expansion of Regional Food Trade - recording available
  • The SFS-MED Platform organised the fourth technical webinar in a series about levers for food systems transformation.
  • - recording available.
25-27 January 2023. Dakar. Dakar 2 Summit – Feed Africa: Food Sovereignty and Resilience. AFDB, AU, FAO, etc 
  • 25/01 Role of International Partners in the Compacts for the Acceleration of Agriculture - recording available.
  • 25/01 Future of Fertilizer - recording available.
  • 26/01 Private Sector Investment in Agribusiness - recording available.
  • 26/01 BUILDING MULTILATERAL PARTNERSHIP AND FINANCING SUPPORT - recording available.
  • 26/01 Scaling Technologies for African Agricultural Transformation - recording available.
  • 26/01 Closing the Financing Gap - recording available.
  • 27/01 Accelerating Trade and Special Agro-Industrial Processing Zones - recording available.
  • 27/01 Policies for Transforming African Agriculture - recording available.
24 January 2023. Food vs Fuel V2.0: Impacts of Biofuels on Agricultural Markets and Food Security
  • Co-organized by IFPRI and Agricultural Market Information System (AMIS)
23 January 2023. InfoPoint conference: Debunking myths about the food systems and what drives hunger
  • This InfoPoint conference focused on how to ensure we have the right analysis and the right data available to make adequate and correct decisions, on the short and the long term, to create truly sustainable and equitable food systems for people while preserving our planet.
18-21 January 2023. Global forum for food and agriculture- GFFA
  • Redirecting Agriculture Policies and Support to Address Climate Change - recording available.
  • Agriculture in the “New Normal”: Future-proofing food systems for a changing world  - recording available
  • Coherent policies, efficient actions: How to address the global food crisis  - recording available
  • This is an introductory tour that highlights the fascinating diversity of millets from around the world, including their botanical characteristics, role in food systems today, and future prospects.
  • - recording available.
18 January 2023. Strengthening Livestock Systems through Climate-Smart and Gender-Sensitive Approaches
  • Panel discussion featuring Feed the Future efforts to strengthen animal feed, fodder and forage production and feeding approaches as a major solution for the climate crisis and women’s empowerment.
  • - recording available.
16 - 20 January 2023. World Economic Forum’s Davos Conference Talks Food Systems
  • 16/01. Regenerative Farming by 2030 – From Talk to Action: How, and How Fast, Can we Resource the Transition to Nature-Positive Farming? - No recording available.
  • 17/01. Mobilizing Investments in Sustainable Food and Agriculture Systems in Africa – A High Level Dialogue
  • This session showcased the development of Food Systems strategies on the African continent and explores the investments required to advance transformation. - No recording available.
  • 17/01 Cooking up Something New: Innovation to Shape the Future of Food - recording available.
  • 18/01. The future of food security. - recording available.
  • 19/01. Tackling The Protein Dilemma - recording available.
  • 19 January 2023. SDG Tent: Nature Positive - recording available.
17 January 2023. Agriculture(s) : le temps des mobilisations.
  • La Fondation FARM organisait une grande conférence qui réunissait tous les acteurs – politiques, chercheurs, financeurs, agriculteurs, étudiants, citoyens… – souhaitant apporter leurs contributions aux transformations indispensables des agricultures et des systèmes alimentaires.
  • - recording available.
13 January 2023. InfoPoint conference : Food Outlook - recording available.

11 January 2023. Conférence de l’InfoPoint: République Démocratique du Congo - paradoxes et transitions agro-économiques - recording available.

4-6 January 2023. Oxford Real Farming Conference
  • 04/01 Seed Battles in Africa: Farmers’ rights and greedy corporates / Batailles de semences en Afrique : Les droits des agriculteurs et la cupidité des entreprises - recording available.
  • 05/01 Ecosystem Restoration and Agroecology through Online Learning - recording available.
  • 06/01 What did COP27 mean for Africa and Agroecology? - recording available.
  • From Sri Lanka to Mexico: Government failures and grassroots solutions to advancing policy - recording available.
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Reports and publications January 2023

EC/INTPA (2022), Engel, P., Slob, A., Laanouni, F., et al., EU support to sustainable agri-food systems in partner countries 2014-2020, Publications Office of the European Union #108 p.

See PAEPARD blogpost with extracts from the report:

  • Overall assessment
  • Internal institutional organisation
  • Global and regional agri-food systems governance
  • EU partnership with the RBAs (Rome based Agencies
  • EU-Africa Research and Innovation (R&I) Partnership
  • National agri-food systems governance
  • Promotion of SAFS agenda
  • Recommendations (extracts)
FAO. 2022. The future of food and agriculture – Drivers and triggers for transformation. The Future of Food and Agriculture, no. 3. Rome. # 444 p.

This report aims at inspiring strategic thinking and actions to transform agrifood systems towards a sustainable, resilient and inclusive future, by building on both previous reports in the same series as well as on a comprehensive corporate strategic foresight exercise that also nurtured FAO Strategic Framework 2022–31.


CGIAR Independent Advisory and Evaluation Service (IAES). (2022). Applying the CGIAR Quality of Research for Development Framework to Process & Performance Evaluations. (Beta version) Rome: IAES. #52 p.

These pioneering evaluation guidelines provide the framing, criteria, dimensions, and methods for assessing the quality of CGIAR research for development. They can be adapted by like-minded organizations conducting research for development (R4D).

The methods and criteria for evaluating CGIAR research are underpinned by two fundamental frameworks crucial to CGIAR and its stakeholders: the Quality of Research for Development Frame of Reference (QoR4D; last revision 2020), and the 2019 OECD Development Assistance Committee (OECD/DAC) Evaluation Criteria.

Tutundjian S.; Maroun D. (2022) White Paper on the Nationally Determined Contributions of Middle East and North Africa Countries Climate Action In the Arab Region
Thriving Solutions LTD #60 p.

This report presents Thriving Solution’s analysis of the most recent National Determined Contribution (NDC) submissions of the following 16 Middle East and North Africa (MENA)


Achieving nutritional security through policies that promote healthy and sustainable diets is indeed possible in The Gambia, but it would require a significant increase in either domestic agricultural production, through improved yields or expanding agricultural land, or increased imports.


IISD (2023) Achieving Sustainable Food Systems in a Global Crisis: Summary Report, # 39 p.

This report summarizes the evidence-based and costed country roadmaps for effective public interventions to transform agriculture and food systems in Ethiopia, Malawi, and Nigeria in a way that ends hunger, makes diets healthier and more affordable, improves the productivity and incomes of small-scale producers and their households, and mitigates and adapts to climate change.

IISD (2022) Country Diagnostic Report: Malawi # 51 p.

This report shows that while agricultural production growth will continue in Malawi, it will not allow the country to achieve its Sustainable Development Goal 2 targets unless significant additional public investments are made to address poverty, promote dietary diversification, and mitigate environmental pressures from agricultural production.


This report presents an evidence-based and costed country roadmap for effective public interventions to transform agriculture and food systems in Nigeria in a way that ends hunger, makes diets healthier and more affordable, improves the productivity and incomes of small-scale producers, and mitigates and adapts to climate change.

This report highlights that without additional measures, progress on reducing extreme poverty in Nigeria is expected to stagnate and even reverse slightly, and that chronic hunger is also projected to increase in the country.

IISD (2023) Achieving Sustainable Food Systems in a Global Crisis: Ethiopia # 73 p.

This report presents an evidence based and costed country roadmap for effective public interventions to transform agriculture and food systems in Ethiopia in a way that ends hunger, makes diets healthier and more affordable, improves the productivity and incomes of small-scale producers and their households, and mitigates and adapts to climate change.

This report shows that over the next decade, projected economic growth and the expansion of agricultural production in Ethiopia will contribute to an accelerated trend in the reduction of undernourishment and extreme poverty in the country.

Kako Nubukpo (2022) Une solution pour l’Afrique : du néoprotectionnisme aux biens communs # 304 p.

Putting in place an African neo-protectionism and preserving its own resources (land, digital goods, etc.), ensuring its sovereignty – food by developing agroecology, monetary and financial with the creation of a debt agency – are all avenues for Africa is reclaiming its destiny. With this conviction: by promoting a sharing economy, the commons are also deeply rooted in African social reality.

France’s ‘Cultiver Protéger Autrement’ (Growing and protecting crops differently) national priority research programme has been launched with the aim of finding new strategies that offer an alternative to pesticides. Research is key to the programme’s success and is being employed with a global vision. All scientific frontiers will be explored in order to gain new knowledge and strengthen society’s efforts to dispense with pesticides
Louise O. Fresco (2023) Ons voedsel. Een levenslang verhaal # 256 p.

Louise Ottilie Fresco is a Dutch scientist and writer known for her work on globally sustainable food production. You can safely describe 'Our food' as her memoirs. Fresco states in the book that food is the most important thing that people share. All food choices, from what you feed your kids to the quick bite at the station, say something about your personality. Food connects, but it also separates. Cultures and religions have their precepts and taboos, which have no biological use but a purely sociological one. Like fish on Friday or a ban on pork.

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Securing sustainable and resilient food systems for The Gambia


Between January 2020 and January 2023, the Food System Adaptations in Changing Environments in Africa (FACE-Africa) project funded by Wellcome and led by the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, brought together researchers with expertise in agricultural sciences, environmental sciences, and nutrition, from both within and outside The Gambia to work with government policymakers and food system stakeholders, including farmers, retailers, and consumers, to co-design strategies to ensure food security and sustainable land-use pathways. 

The scenarios developed as part of the project focused on climate change impacts on agricultural productivity, agricultural trade flows, land use and national climate, as well as nutritional and agricultural policies including adopting climate-smart agricultural practices and shifting toward nutritional and sustainable diets. 

The project team, which included researchers from IIASA, have produced a number of recommendations that have been made available in a new IIASA policy brief along with their key findings.
“Achieving nutritional security through policies that promote healthy and sustainable diets is indeed possible in The Gambia, but it would require a significant increase in either domestic agricultural production, through improved yields or expanding agricultural land, or increased imports,” explains Amanda Palazzo, a researcher in the Integrated Biosphere Futures Research Group of the IIASA Biodiversity and Natural Resources Program.
Policies that enable farmers to reduce nutrient deficiency and water stress and adopt climate-smart agricultural practices, will significantly improve crop yields and local production in the country, while also improving the agricultural sector's resilience and reducing import dependency, thus ensuring sustainable and healthy diets. 

The team however cautions that, in the absence of adopting resilience options, adverse climate conditions will continue to widen yield gaps, exacerbate crop losses, and increase dependency on imports, thereby threatening the food security of The Gambia.

As part of the project, researchers also developed or adapted a number of tools and other products to provide decision makers in agriculture and food systems with the information needed to make evidence-based decisions going forward. 

The Food, Agriculture, Biodiversity, Land-Use, and Energy (FABLE) Calculator, for example, is a Microsoft Excel-based accounting tool developed within the framework of the FABLE consortium and The Food and Land Use (FOLU) Coalition, and examines the potential evolution of food and land-use systems between 2000 and 2050 with a focus on developments in the agriculture sector. 

The tool was adapted for The Gambia and used to assess the impact of multiple possible future scenarios (i.e., climate change and agricultural productivity) on key food security indicators to show the achievability of healthy and sustainable diets. 

To complement the FABLE-Gambia Calculator, the team also developed the FACE-Africa - Shiny app visualization tool to ensure that FABLE-Gambia Calculator scenario results are easily accessible to technical experts, policymakers, researchers, and NGOs working in the food, agriculture, land use, trade, and economics sectors of The Gambia.

Further information:

Click here for the full policy brief
FACE-Africa - Shiny app
Click here to visit the FACE-Africa website
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Monday, January 30, 2023

A virtual tour of diverse millets from around the world for food systems

20 January 2023. A virtual tour of diverse millets from around the world for food systems and other benefits. 

This is an introductory tour that highlights the fascinating diversity of millets from around the world, including their botanical characteristics, role in food systems today, and future prospects. 

There are many different types of millets, such as pearl millet and finger millet from Africa, and proso millet, foxtail millet, Japanese millet, and browntop millet from Asia. 

All were domesticated as human food crops but over the years have found many additional uses, including for livestock, birdseed, and conservation plantings. Collectively, millets provide a group of relatively nutritious grains that can be grown in tough conditions and add biodiversity to farming systems. 

Speaker 1: Dr. Rob Myers 

Rob Myers is Director of the MU Center for Regenerative Agriculture and an adjunct faculty member with the Plant Science and Technology Division. He also serves as Regional Director of Extension Programs for the USDA-NIFA North Central Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) program. His professional expertise encompasses sustainable and regenerative agriculture, soil health, conservation and cropping system diversification. He has conducted research, education and extension programs with many different crops including several millet species. His Ph.D. and M.S. degrees in agronomy are from University of Minnesota. 

Speaker 2: Dr. David Brenner 

David Brenner is the Millet Curator at a gene bank, the USDA’s North Central Regional Plant Introduction Station in Ames, Iowa, and David is an Iowa State University employee. David is responsible for the United States Department of Agriculture’s national collections of barnyard millet, foxtail millet and the Panicum millets, in addition to a diverse collection of other non-millet crops. David and his crew grow new fresh seed stocks for genetic conservation and document the collection on the publicly accessible Search GRIN Global website. Seeds from the collection are distributed to researchers world-wide and free of charge. These seed are a resource for innovation, economic development and are also valued as part of our bio-cultural heritage. David adds value to the millet collection by expanding the representation of crop wild relatives of foxtail and barnyard millets, and growing field rows of millets for observation.


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Upcoming events ans webinars February 2023

31 January 2023. Session VII – The Ukraine Crisis and African Economies Opportunities and Potential for the Expansion of Regional Food Trade

31 January 2023 from 1:15 - 2:45 PM (EST, New York) ‘Leveraging Interlinkages Among SDGS Through Inclusive Partnerships with Local Communities’ -  REGISTER HERE

31 January 2023. 16:00 GMT, 11:00 EST. Salmonella and low-moisture foods
  • by African Continental Association for Food Protection (ACAFP)
  • You can also follow the event here: https://youtu.be/EInui-TkCBY
31 January 2023. SFN+ Expert Working Groups Round 1 - Launch Webinar
  • SFN+ is launching an Expert Working Groups Round 1 to facilitate knowledge exchange between SFN+ projects and members.
  • The Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) Food Network+ (SFN) of the UK brings together STFC researchers and facilities with research and industry in the agri-food sector.


8 - 9 February 2023. AFRICA AGRI EXPO
  • Africa Agri Expo cater a networking platform for Agriculture Companies, Service Providers, Machinery & Equipment Companies, Technology Companies, Agro Chemical and Fertiliser companies, Seed Companies and Investors to build valuable connections.
9 February 2023, 10:00 CET - 9 February 2023, 11:30 CET.  InfoPoint conference: Digitalizing Development – not digitizing the status quo
  • Drawing on concrete case studies, this session will explore the realities of applying digital tools in “last-mile” settings. 
  • It will propose alternative pathways for empowering women, smallholder farmers and other marginalized groups to build secure and resilient futures through digitalization.
9 February 2023. 12:30-2:30 EST. 18:30 CEST.
  • Featuring Mamadou Goita (Mali) - IRPAD; Larissa Packer (Brazil) GRAIN; Marvin Gómez (Honduras) SeedChange. 
  • Simultaneous translation to Spanish & French available 

9 February 2023, 02:00 PM – 03:00 PM Addis Ababa Time. Promoting sustainable and healthy diets: the role of National Public Health Institutes”
  • Co-Organized by the National Information Platform for Nutrition (NIPN), the Ethiopian Public Health Institute (EPHI), the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), the GIZ and the Norwegian Public Health Institute (NIPH)
  • Meeting ID: 916 3037 1158 / Passcode: 079048
9 February 2023. 2:30-4:00 pm GMT Introduction to USAID's Research Translation Toolkit
  • WEBINAR 1 | A Vital Resource: Exploring USAID’s Research Translation Toolkit
  • The USAID Research Division and USAID's Research Technical Assistance Center (RTAC) invites USAID staff and partners to a four-part webinar series that provides an overview of our Research Translation Toolkit and a deep dive into each of its three sections.
  • This toolkit is particularly relevant to those supporting or implementing research projects who can benefit from step-by-step guidance on communicating key messages to the right decision-makers.

9 February 2023. 9:00 am – 10 am ET. 3:00 PM-4:00 PM CEST Estimating the Country-Level Impacts of High Food, Fuel and Fertilizer Prices


10 February- 17 March 2023. Food Systems e-course: 2023

13-17 February 2023.IFAD Governing Council

17 February, 2023, 4:15 pm - 10:00 pm CET. WFP Innovation Accelerator Pitch Event
  • Eight teams will showcase diverse ideas being piloted across Cameroon, Colombia, Egypt, India, Iraq, Italy, Mali, Mozambique, Peru, and Tanzania. 
  • Their innovative solutions are aimed at: Mitigating the rising cost of inputs and food, Strengthening productivity and outcomes along food value chains.
20 February 2023. Utility of microbiological indicator testing in modern food safety management
22 February 2023. Launch Event of the Digitally Enabled Resilience and Nutrition Policy Innovations (DERPIn) Project

22 February 2023.14:00 UTC (UK time) - 60mins Can smallholder coffee farmers achieve a living income? The TechnoServe perspective


  • to learn more about the publication ‘Key figures on the European food chain’
  • This publication, released in December 2022, focuses on the EU’s farm-to-fork chain and presents intuitive visualisations and innovative data presentations. 
  • It includes an overview of agriculture and fisheries, and then moves on to the processing, trade, distribution and consumption of food and beverages. 
  • The publication concludes with a chapter on environmental issues related to the various stages of the food chain, including food waste. 
  • Research and Extension Update from the National Institute of Agricultural Technologies (INTA) of Argentina
  • WEBINAR 2 | Reaching the Right People at the Right Time: How to Use the Stakeholder Analysis Section
  • The USAID Research Division and USAID's Research Technical Assistance Center (RTAC) invites USAID staff and partners to a four-part webinar series that provides an overview of our Research Translation Toolkit and a deep dive into each of its three sections.
  • This toolkit is particularly relevant to those supporting or implementing research projects who can benefit from step-by-step guidance on communicating key messages to the right decision-makers.
  • with experts from International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), Wageningen Economic Research (WEcR), and the Agricultural Model Intercomparison and Improvement Project (AgMIP)
23 February 2023.  AgriFoods innovation Webinar.
  • Dr Abiye Tob-Ogu, a SFN+ funded researcher, will talk about his research on decentralized logistics and food waste.
  • Food waste remains a significant challenge for many developing countries and sub saharan Africa is significantly affected. 
  • Through funding from the STFC, a DLT approach was designed to enhance communication between agro-food actors, including the digital decentralisation of transport procurement.
23 February 2023, 9:00 -10:30 AM EST / 3 pm CEST. Fertilizers Disrupted: Time to Embrace innovation
  • This webinar from the World Bank is the first in this new series under the Food Systems Innovation webinar series and will be dedicated at showcasing a range of innovations and discussing how the government can use and/or support the scaling up of these innovations for sustainable soil fertility management.
26-27 February 2023. The AU Commission (AUC), the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) and the African Development Bank (AfDB) are organising the second session of the fourth Africa Climate Talks in Niamey, which will focus on a just and equitable transition and human security in Africa.

27 February - 2 March 2023. ECA, the AUC, the AfDB and the government of Niger are hosting the 2023 Africa Regional Forum on Sustainable Development in Niamey.


28 February 2023, 13:00-14:30 CET/15:00-16:30 EAT. Harnessing Technology in the Circular Economy for Climate Action in Africa

1 - 2 March 2023. The Sankalp Africa Summit 
  • This is an event that catalyzes collaborations across the entrepreneurial ecosystem in order to solve global challenges sustainably.
  • 01/03 Scaling Up Regenerative Agriculture: a Social Entrepreneur's Perspective
  • 01/03 It takes a digital village to improve smallholders’ productivity and resilience.
  • 01/03 Scaling SMEs to strengthen African food system – making it affordable, nutritious and accessible
  • 01/03 What is the real cost of food security?
  • 02/03 Is GMO the answer to food security for sub-Saharan Africa?

  • GFAR Talks
  • Jim French of GCHERA and Vincent Mariadho of PROLINNOVA with moderation by Sayed Azam-Ali.
2 March 2023. Introducing pro-WEAI complementary indicators for nutrition- sensitive agriculture and market inclusion projects by IFPRI

2 March 2023. Introduction to USAID's Research Translation Toolkit
  • WEBINAR 3 | Capturing Attention: How to Use the Communication Products Section
  • The USAID Research Division and USAID's Research Technical Assistance Center (RTAC) invites USAID staff and partners to a four-part webinar series that provides an overview of our Research Translation Toolkit and a deep dive into each of its three sections.
  • This toolkit is particularly relevant to those supporting or implementing research projects who can benefit from step-by-step guidance on communicating key messages to the right decision-makers.
7 March 2023 6TH GLF INVESTMENT CASE SYMPOSIUM Finance for nature: What comes next?
  • The Global Landscapes Forum (GLF) is the world’s largest knowledge-led platform on integrated land use, dedicated to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals and Paris Climate Agreement.
7 March 2023. 1200 EAT, 1100 Southern African time and 0900 for much of West Africa/GMT. GIS and modelling methods to address water-based issues
7 March 2023. 8 PM EAT Drones for agriculture Masterclass 

  • A joint convening of AGRA and the African Union Commissioner for Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy, and Sustainable Environment (ARBE).
9 March 2023. Introduction to USAID's Research Translation Toolkit
  • WEBINAR 4 | Transforming Research into Programs and Policies: How to Use the Research-to-Action Plan Section
  • The USAID Research Division and USAID's Research Technical Assistance Center (RTAC) invites USAID staff and partners to a four-part webinar series that provides an overview of our Research Translation Toolkit and a deep dive into each of its three sections.
  • This toolkit is particularly relevant to those supporting or implementing research projects who can benefit from step-by-step guidance on communicating key messages to the right decision-makers.

13-15 March 2023 The 3rd Global Soil Biodiversity Conference, Dublin, Ireland

15- 17 March 2023 AGRITECH WEST AFRICA
  • exhibition and marketing platform for companies in the agriculture technology, agro chemicals, irrigation & systems, and all products related to agriculture and value addition, if they are targeting to connect partners and expand your business in West Africa.
20 March 2023. 8:00 – 9:30 a.m. ET Groundwater: Potential and Pitfalls for Africa



30 March - 1 April 2023 AFMASS FOOD EXPO EASTERN AFRICA
  • The food industry in Eastern Africa is the most vibrant in Africa – as new investments and new product innovations surge in key markets in the region such as Kenya, Ethiopia, Tanzania, Rwanda, Uganda etc

15-8 June 2023 8th Africa Agribusiness and Science Week

  • Reducing risks associated with rural and agricultural investments

19 June - 30 June 2023. ANH 2023 will be hosted in a hybrid format: online and in Malawi.
  • The ANH Academy Week is a series of annual events that bring together the community of researchers, practitioners and policymakers working at the intersection of agriculture, food systems, nutrition and health

24 - 28 July 2023. UN Food Systems Summit | 2023 Stocktaking Moment

18 - 21 September 2022 7th African Conference of Agricultural Economists & 60th Annual AEASA Conference 18 - 21 September 2023 Durban, South Africa. Through Crisis: Building Resilient Agri-food Systems in Africa



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Sunday, January 29, 2023

Strengthening Livestock Systems through Climate-Smart and Gender-Sensitive Approaches

18 January 2023. Panel discussion featuring Feed the Future efforts to strengthen animal feed, fodder and forage production and feeding approaches as a major solution for the climate crisis and women’s empowerment. 

The panelists described success stories in their respective programs, highlighting how increasing feed efficiency for livestock is a climate-smart technique that can also lead to increased agency for female livestock keepers in Low- and Middle-income Countries (LMIC). 

The trajectory of the livestock sector’s growth can be changed by investing in sustainable intensification and climate-smart strategies to increase productivity. This has the potential to increase the resilience of those most vulnerable to climate impacts and decrease greenhouse gas emissions intensity per unit of nutritious food produced. Furthermore, investing in women-inclusive livestock production in LMIC will lead to more economically and climate-resilient agricultural systems, increased availability of nutritionally rich animal source foods in vulnerable communities and restored ecosystems globally. From Burkina Faso to Kenya to Bangladesh, these programs have shown that investing in climate-smart livestock-rearing practices can lead to both decreased methane emissions intensity and increased climate risk mitigation for women.

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The challenge of making science-based policy recommendations for a global food system

26 January 2023. The challenge of making science-based policy recommendations for a global food system

The food system is vital to our ability to attain the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. World hunger has been on the rise for several years in a row, biodiversity is in crisis, shortages of fresh water are continuing, as is the depletion of the world’s soils, and the world’s natural resources are being consumed at an unsustainable rate. All forms of malnutrition lead to poorer health. Drought, flooding, fires, and other consequences of a changed climate are already threatening people’s opportunities to live good lives. Making global food production and consumption more sustainable –– is a critical element in tackling these challenges.

  • Welcome Academy Secretary General and Managing Director, Eva Pettersson, KSLA (Royal Swedish Agricultural Academy)
  • Introduction of Prof. Jennifer Clapp – Prof Anders Wästfelt, SU
  • Why and how science matters in the development of Global Food Policies? – Prof. Jennifer Clapp, Univ. of Waterloo

    Prof. Jennifer Clapp is a newly elected fellow to the KSLA General section. She is a Professor at the Global Food Security and Sustainability in the School of Environment, Resources and Sustainability (SERS) at the University of Waterloo, Ontario in Canada. Throughout her career, her research has focused on the global governance of problems that arise at the intersection of the global economy, the environment, and food security. Furthermore, Prof. Clapp is the Vice Chair for the High-Level Panel of Experts, providing scientific advice to the UN Committee for Food Security, CFS. The CFS uses a multi-stakeholder, inclusive approach to develop and endorses global food policy recommendations.
    Agenda

  • Challenges with global food systems – Dr. Matilda Bariabar, University of Stockholm
  • Translating science into policy in a development context –Prof. Sofia Boqvist, The Swedish University of Agricutural Sciences, SLU
  • A global food system exposed to multiple crisis – Ass. Prof .Assem Abu Hatab, Nordic Africa Institute
  • Experiences of developing research capacity in Low Income countries – Dr Anna-Karin Norling, Senior Research Advisor, Swedish International Development Agency, Sida

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Country-level work building on Ceres2030

In 2022, IISD and the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), undertook ‘deep dives’ into the nexus of food systems, climate change and diets in three countries: Malawi, Ethiopia and Nigeria. This work builds on the Ceres2030 project and aims to strengthen the evidence base for climate-smart nutrition interventions in food systems. 

It seeks to identify how we can influence consumption patterns through policy interventions that will lead to better environmental and nutritional outcomes. As a first step in this work, IISD and IFPRI produced country diagnostic reports for the three countries. These provide an overview of relevant economic, social and climate (mitigation and adaptation) trends and projections, and key policies in the countries.


IISD (2023) Achieving Sustainable Food Systems in a Global Crisis: Summary Report, # 39 p.

This report summarizes the evidence-based and costed country roadmaps for effective public interventions to transform agriculture and food systems in Ethiopia, Malawi, and Nigeria in a way that ends hunger, makes diets healthier and more affordable, improves the productivity and incomes of small-scale producers and their households, and mitigates and adapts to climate change.

IISD (2022) Country Diagnostic Report: Malawi # 51 p.

This report shows that while agricultural production growth will continue in Malawi, it will not allow the country to achieve its Sustainable Development Goal 2 targets unless significant additional public investments are made to address poverty, promote dietary diversification, and mitigate environmental pressures from agricultural production.


This report presents an evidence-based and costed country roadmap for effective public interventions to transform agriculture and food systems in Nigeria in a way that ends hunger, makes diets healthier and more affordable, improves the productivity and incomes of small-scale producers, and mitigates and adapts to climate change.

This report highlights that without additional measures, progress on reducing extreme poverty in Nigeria is expected to stagnate and even reverse slightly, and that chronic hunger is also projected to increase in the country.

IISD (2023) Achieving Sustainable Food Systems in a Global Crisis: Ethiopia # 73 p.

This report presents an evidence based and costed country roadmap for effective public interventions to transform agriculture and food systems in Ethiopia in a way that ends hunger, makes diets healthier and more affordable, improves the productivity and incomes of small-scale producers and their households, and mitigates and adapts to climate change.

This report shows that over the next decade, projected economic growth and the expansion of agricultural production in Ethiopia will contribute to an accelerated trend in the reduction of undernourishment and extreme poverty in the country.
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Friday, January 27, 2023

Mobilising African Food Policy and Action for Healthy Food Systems

AFSA shared 16 January 2023 a complete playlist of videos from the 4th AFSA Biennial Food Systems Conference, which took place in Yaoundé, Cameroon, from November 28-30, 2022, under the theme "Mobilising African Food Policy and Action for Healthy Food Systems." 

Over 170 people attended the conference, which brought
together actors from over 30 countries.

In recognition of the African Union's Year of Nutrition 2022, this year's conference highlighted novel approaches for learning and celebrating African food cultures, foods, diets, and cuisines to advance an African perspective on nutrition and food systems.

The event also marked the official launch of the "My Food Is African" campaign, which aims to inspire Africans to seek and demand traditional foods, dishes, diets, and cuisines. The traditional cooking
activity, which intends to stir up people's interest in learning about Africa's unique, delicious, and

healthy foods and cultures, was the conference's highlight, and it aims to foster a safer, healthier, and more sustainable path to food sovereignty. As people from different countries learned new recipes, they enjoyed the variety, vitality, and depth of our food culture.

At the conclusion of the conference, AFSA members and participants call on the African Union, African governments, social movements, and donor communities around the world to direct funding toward agroecology, which builds resilience in food systems in the face of unpredictable events and multilayered crises that the continent has encountered. They also urge the African Union Commission (AUC) to base the development of the emerging Food Systems Policy on the diverse cultural foods and dishes of Africa, recognizing their importance to people's health and nutritional security.

See the synopsis of the three days and some insightful interviews


Check here to see the full list of videos and interviews from the food systems conference.

Click here to see how traditional African dishes are made. (My Food Is African)


Related 
27 January 2023:
Dans le cadre de sa campagne #Authenticitéalimentaire en collaboration avec AFSA le CNPAF RDC organise ce vendredi 27 Janvier un atelier de restitution de la Cartographie de la production des aliments locaux et traditionnels en Republique Democratiwque du Congo  réalisée par le professeur et consultant Théophile MBEMBA FUNDU, qui poursuit comme objectifs la validation de cette étude et l’élaboration d’une feuille de route en faveur de la promotion et la valorisation de la production des aliments locaux
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Thursday, January 26, 2023

World Economic Forum’s Davos Conference Talks Food Systems

16 - 20 January 2023. During the Davos 2023 Conference hosted by the World Economic Forum, speakers highlighted the need for investment in small-scale farmers, regenerative agriculture, and data technologies. 

The Conference brought together academics, governments, businesses, nonprofits, artists, advocacy organizations, and other parties to discuss pressing issues of the day, with food security and food systems discourse on the menu.

During the World Economic Forum’s Annual Meeting, the SDG Tent hosted around 40 events led by more than 10 partners. From smaller conversations with 40 people to larger discussions with up to 140 people, topics such as climate action, food systems transformation, youth entrepreneurship, nature and impact investing, among others, will be explored. For nearly 20 years, the SDG Tent and its predecessor, the World Food Programme Tent, have brought business, civil society and the public sector together on sustainability and the role of business in society. 

Extracts of the programme and recordings


16/01. Regenerative Farming by 2030 – From Talk to Action: How, and How Fast, Can we Resource the Transition to Nature-Positive Farming?

No recording available.
Taking care of agricultural land and its biodiversity is essential in addressing the nature and climate crises and reaching the Sustainable Development Goals. Farmers, governments, businesses, academics and civil society have discussed principles, policies, metrics and methodologies to take food systems towards regenerative outcomes. But with only 7 years to go till 2030, and 5 of those needed to realise results on the ground, how and how fast can we support farmers to transition to nature-positive outcomes? This gathering called to action to mobilise financing, innovation, knowledge and support to farmers around the world to realise their potential to transform food production and capture carbon.
  • André Hoffmann, Vice Chairman, Roche, Co-Founder, InTent, Switzerland
  • Svein Tore Holsether, President and CEO, Yara International, Norway
  • Hanneke Faber, President Global Nutrition, Unilever, UK
  • Geraldine Matchett, Co-Chief Executive Officer, DSM, Netherlands
  • Chrystel Monthéan, Executive Vice-President, Yara Americas
  • Jennifer Morris, Chief Executive Officer, The Nature Conservancy, US
This session showcased the development of Food Systems strategies on the African continent and explores the investments required to advance transformation. 

No recording available.

AGRA, in partnership with the African Union and NEPAD, has facilitated numerous dialogues and provided support to governments to go beyond national pathways to advance practical action in advancing Food systems thinking and transformation in Africa. Action and impact will require resources. 
  • At this gathering governments, businesses, civil society discussed financing and investment opportunities to advance funding and action that will deliver food systems transformation in Africa.
  • Participating governments, companies, and development partners, at the forefront of food systems transformation, showcased national strategies, flagship programs and investment opportunities. The session also explored opportunities to unlock much-needed public and private finance for
    food systems transformation    , as well as the latest efforts by the African Union to track and monitor progress, with the aim of driving continual country-level improvement for people, planet, and prosperity
  • Participants identified key priorities and actions ahead of the AGRF 2023, the Africa’s Food systems summit taking place in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania in September 2023. 
Key questions that were addressed in this session:
  1. How are African countries, who are spearheading transformation responding to the ambitions they have set themselves through their national strategies?
  2. How can we close the annual USD 200 billion investment gap in Africa’s food systems transformation?
What critical partnerships are required to facilitate food systems transformation?
  • Moderator - Sir David Nabarro, UN Response Group and Strategic Director, 4SD
  • Dr. Agnes Kalibata, President, AGRA and Host of the AGRF Secretariat
  • H.E Samia Suluhu Hassan, President, United Republic of Tanzania
Reflections on Leadership Commitments
  • Jai Shroff, Global Chief Executive Officer, UPL
  • Rodrigo Santos, Member of the Board of Management; President, Crop Science Division, Bayer
  • Berry Marttin, Member of the Managing Board, Rabobank
Setting National Priorities; from Pathways to Strategies
  • Mr Martin Bwalya, Director Knowledge Management and Program Evaluation AUDA, African Union Development Agency (AUDA-NEPAD)
  • Hussein Mohamed Bashe, Minister for Agriculture, United Republic of Tanzania
  • Dr. Ildephonse Musafiri, Minister of State, Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Resources, Rwanda
  • Anne Beathe Tvinnereim, Minister of International Development, Norway
How can we Accelerate Progress and Prioritise Investments?
  • Ndidi Okonkwo Nwuneli, Co-Founder and Executive Chair, Sahel Consulting: Agriculture & Nutrition Ltd.
  • Fernanda Lopes Larsen, Executive Vice President Africa & Asia, Yara International
  • Mauricio Adade, President, Latin America and Global Malnutrition Partnerships, DSM
  • Rodger Voorhies, President of Global Growth and Opportunity, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
  • Vera Songwe, Chair of the Board, Liquidity and Sustainability Facility
Taking it forward: Innovative Approaches Emerging from the Continent
  • Jennifer Baarn, Managing Director, AGRF
  • Adam Gerstenmier, Executive Director, Food Action Alliance
  • Boaz Keizire, Head, Policy & Advocacy, AGRA
  • Special remarks - Mr. Alvaro Lario, President, International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD)

17/01 Cooking up Something New: Innovation to Shape the Future of Food


Food Systems Summit Actionable Dialogue defining actions and innovation to deliver the SDGs.



18/01. The future of food security.


From processing to packaging, food systems are being shaped and reimagined. The panel looked at what breakthrough technology and ideas could help revolutionize patterns of consumption. 
  • Werner Baumann, CEO of Bayer; 
  • David Beasley, executive director at the UN World Food Programme; 
  • Hanneke Faber, president of nutrition at Unilever; 
  • Sara Menker, CEO of Gro Intelligence 
  • Sean de Cleene, head of Food Systems Initiative at the World Economic Forum Geneva.

19/01. Tackling The Protein Dilemma


Royal DSM organized discussion on the future of animal farming. With the global population predicted to reach nearly 10 billion people by 2050, the demand for animal-based protein is expected to increase by around 70%. To keep the production of animal proteins within planetary boundaries, we need to make rapid, sustainable changes to methods of production, for instance by increasing efficiency, reducing land use, and cutting down greenhouse gas emissions.
  • Moderator: Jenny Davis-Peccoud, Head Sustainability & Responsibility, Bain & Company
  • Mariana Vasconcelos, Co-Founder and CEO of Agrosmart
  • Ivo Lansbergen, President Animal Nutrition & Health at DSM
  • Arnold Puech d’Alissac, President, World Farmers’ Organisation (WFO)
  • Juan Lavista Ferres, VP, Chief Data Scientist and Lab Director, Microsoft AI For Good Lab

19 January 2023. SDG Tent: Nature Positive

The combined loss of nature and climate change is threatening our health, our wellbeing, our societies and our economies. It is no longer a theory or a distant risk but something that is happening right here and now. The recent COP15 Kunming-Montreal Agreement commits the world to halting and reversing biodiversity loss by 2030. This must be the launch pad for action from governments, business, and society to transition towards a nature-positive world.

The ‘Nature Positive Dinner’ at Davos 2023 aimed to be the impetus for the bold, wide-ranging and urgent action required to deliver a nature-positive world. It dived into detail about how we can all contribute towards delivering the vision of more nature in 2030 than we had in 2020 through protection, restoration and sustainable use, and how to finance such a globally important and critical transition. Action towards a nature-positive future must be swift and bold. We must all double down on nature-positive action as we move from discussion and negotiation to implementation, action and, most importantly, finance this delivery.
  • Sweta Chakraborty, Climate Behavioral Scientist and CEO, We Don’t Have Time US
  • Diane Holdorf, Executive Vice President, WBCSD
  • Hindou Oumarou Ibrahim, Coordinator, Association of Peul Women & Autochthonous Peoples of Chad
  • Marco Lambertini, Special Envoy, WWF International
  • Anushka Ratnayake, Founder and CEO, MyAgro, Senegal – Social Entrepreneur of the Year 2020
  • ​Johan Rockström, Director, Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK)
  • Eva Zabey, Executive Director, Business For Nature
  • Peter Bakker, President & CEO, World Business Council for Sustainable Development
  • Rohitesh Dhawan, CEO, International Council on Mining and Metals
  • Berry Marttin, Member of the Managing Board, Rabobank Group
  • James McCall, Chief Sustainability Officer, Hewlett-Packard (HP)
  • Mads Nipper, President and CEO, ORSTED
  • Cherie Nursalim, Vice Chairman, GITI Group
  • Achim Steiner UNDP administrator
  • Dr Jeanne d'Arc Mujawamariya Minister of Environment, of the Republic of Rwanda
  • Noa, Singer, Israel
  • Carlos Nobre, Brazilian Scientist focused on Amazon
  • Sanda Ojiambo, Assistant Secretary-General; Executive Director & CEO of the United Nations Global Compact
  • André Hoffmann, Vice-Chairman, Roche, Co-Founder, InTent
  • Alain Pilloux, Vice President, Banking, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development
  • Kirsten Schuijt, Director-General, WWF International
  • Andrew Steer, President & CEO, Bezos Earth Fund
  • Debbie Aung Din Taylor, Co-Founder, Proximity Designs
  • William Warshauer, CEO, Technoserve
  • Marina Silva, Minister for Environment and Climate Change, Brazil

Related:

Article by Max Sano, a Research and Writing Intern with Food Tank based in Queens, New York.

During the Davos 2023 Conference hosted by the World Economic Forum, speakers highlighted the need for investment in small-scale farmers, regenerative agriculture, and data technologies. 

The Conference brought together academics, governments, businesses, nonprofits, artists, advocacy organizations, and other parties to discuss pressing issues of the day, with food security and food systems discourse on the menu.
“Farmers around the world (especially smallholder farmers) bear the burden of climate impacts and food insecurity but can’t bear the burden of making the transition alone,” Tania Strauss, Head of Food Systems Initiative at the World Economic Forum, stresses.
Alvaro Lario, President of the U.N. International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) shares Strauss’ concern and underscores the importance of supporting rural agriculture. “Only long-term investments in rural economies can provide long-lasting solutions to hunger, under-nutrition and poverty,” Lario said in a statement ahead of the conference. “This is what will enable small-scale farmers to increase local production, better adapt to climate change, build short and local food chains, build and sustain local markets and commercial opportunities, and create small rural businesses.”
The speakers also call for urgent investment in rural food systems. According to IFAD, small-scale farmers feed two out of three people on the planet, yet they face the brunt of the climate crisis and a lack of financial support. Even taking into account worsening inflation, local and regional conflicts, and extreme weather events, farmers who make up the Global Majority produce 30 percent of food products on just 11 percent of total farmland, they report.
IFAD Goodwill Ambassador Idris Elba also sounded the alarm for rural investment, stating “[Farmers] are not just looking for aid and handouts, they’re looking for investment.”
The speakers also promoted regenerative agricultural practices as another means to strengthen global food security. The transition away from conventional agriculture was a key component of conversations around achieving food security moving forward. 

In alignment with The Global Biodiversity Framework, Food Sustainability Director at Unilever Dorothy Shaver and Director of One Planet Business Stefania Avanzini calls for transformation of agricultural subsidies toward regenerative farming practices.
“When properly implemented, regenerative agricultural practices can protect and enhance biodiversity at and around farms, improve or preserve carbon and water retention in the soil and enhance the resilience of crops and nature,” Shaver and Avanzini write in a memo.
 “Governments can support the transition to regenerative agriculture by reforming harmful agricultural subsidies and creating opportunities for an equitable, nature-positive and Net-Zero economy.”
In order to support both small-scale farmers and the regenerative agriculture transition, researchers encourage the integration of food and data systems. 

Agri-tech researchers at the World Economic Forum call for further attention to cleaner, more-streamlined data collection to support farmers as climate instability and market fluctuations continue to occur in the near future.

Julie Sweet, Chair and CEO of Accenture, points out the benefits of streamlining data across different cultural and climatic contexts: 
“In many cases people have been doubters about why you need to have really clean data connecting to external data, use these then foundational models on specific use cases—a lot is going to be in digital manufacturing, in agriculture, industrial use cases – and it reminds everyone you have to get the data right.”
The World Economic Forum sees three key solutions to world food insecurity: 
  1. Financial investment in regenerative agriculture, 
  2. robust policy to fire up market growth, 
  3. and national leadership in transforming their food systems. 
“We must embrace complex and holistic solutions like climate change and food security together,” Strauss says.

Related:
The Food Action Alliance was launched during the Sustainable Development Impact Summit 2019 by the World Economic Forum, International Fund of Agricultural Development (IFAD) and Rabobank, and today engages over 35 partners from government, business, international organizations, civil society and farmer organizations.

Flagship initiatives supported by the alliance contribute to tangible impact on food systems in multiple ways, including promoting human health, planetary health, streamlining value chains, improving livelihoods and pushing forward country-led initiatives that strengthen local food systems.

Examples
  • Alliance partners in Southern Africa have supported the Southern African Confederation of Agricultural Unions (SACAU) Poultry Solution, which aims to reach 10 million farmers in the region, 50% of which will be women and young agripreneurs. Results of these collaborations include developing a concrete concept note that highlights specific investment opportunities, building and engaging a group of 10+ supporting partners and gaining international leadership visibility through events. SACAU has mobilized multiple stakeholders in working groups on regional trade, livestock feed and consumer awareness to co-develop solutions.
  • The alliance is involved in other value chain transformation initiatives including East African dairy through Dairy Nourishes Africa.
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