Partners participating in the meeting included the AUC, AUDA, the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), the FAO, UNIDO, UNECA, the Pan-African Agribusiness Chamber, the Pan-African Farmers Organisation (PAFO), the Africa Business Council, IFPRI, African Continental Free-Trade Area, Afreximbank, AfDB and the CAAPs Secretariat hosted by the Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa. The rest were country representatives from Zambia and Zimbabwe, key private sector players such as Bühler Group, Grüner, BRICS as well as the WFP.
- compiled feedback from RECs on the CAAPs process, infrastructure models, and the required legal instruments for joint governance and PPPs in transboundary settings within the AfCFTA context;
- agreed on a harmonized process for engagements with countries;
- compiled and validated feedback of criteria for mapping future transboundary agro-industrial
development zones in Africa; - developed a joint roadmap for rolling out CAAPs in AU Member States; and
- developed action plans for joint resource mobilization and partnership engagement among RECs to develop CAAPs.
"Member states are urged to engage all financial institutions, as #CAAPs are huge investments which requires capital injection." - Anselme Vodounhessi, CAAPs Coordinator, FARA
"There is need to come up with innovative solutions to mobilise resources for #CAAPs to be successful" - Benjamin Akobundu, @NEPAD_Agency
"#CAAPs is not just a programme but a vision to achieve a food-secure Africa. Things must be done differently to ensure member states realize the full potential of the initiative" Edna Kalima @NEPAD_Agency
Background:
The
African Union Commission and PPP in the agro food sector
African countries all together, have been spending
roughly for the last 5 years, about 90
billion of US dollars every year, to import food commodities on the
continent. And this is expected to reach 110
billion of US dollars per year from the year 2025.
It has been hard to achieve the AU Assembly Decision
of “tripling Intra-African trade for
agricultural commodities and services by 2015” as committed in the June
2014 Malabo Declaration on agriculture transformation; and more, it seems
impossible for Africa to take over the food market which is currently
outsourced to the rest of the world. This is because Africa has not enough
industries to transform raw products, outputs of smallholders farmers in
Africa, and this leads to a huge post-harvest loss and a poor level of revenues
for farmers.
The CAAPs are 5 large common agro-industrial zones
with transboundary mega agro-industries and food supply corridors, that will be
established in suitable agro-ecological areas, in each of the 5 geographical
regions of Africa. Each zone will be
dominated by specific agricultural commodities, of which continental value
chains will be developed, to produce and process the quantum of the selected
commodities, that can be traded amongst African states, to gradually offset the
import bill of these commodities. In the list of the selected commodities being
discussed by the CAAPs Technical Working Group, Rice, Maize, Wheat, Yam, Cassava, Horticulture, Poultry, Livestock, and
Cocoa will be prioritized based on business case analysis and on the
outcomes of the regional consultations with members’ states and the Regional
Economic Communities (RECs).
November
2022. At
the AU Summit on Industrialization and Economic Diversification, in November
2022 in Niger, the AU Stakeholders' Joint Declaration on mobilizing
partnerships for implementing the CAAPs, recommended the implementation of ten (10) CAAPs Demonstration Projects
of about two (2) per region.
- PC 1- Programme Cluster on the CAAPs Projects
Preparation (Feasibility, Design Studies, and Investments promotion)
- PC 2- Programme Cluster on mapping current and
future Agro-parks, food reserves, and food corridors in Africa, and
mapping the SHF/SMEs enabling political and business environment for
sustainable production under the CAAPs.
- PC 3- Programme Cluster on AUDA-NEPAD led
engagement with Regional Economic Communities (RECs) under the CAAPs
process.
- PC 4- Programme Cluster on RECs- led Regional
Coordination of member states, and Stakeholders engagement.
- PC 5- Programme Cluster on Continental leadership
engagement, coordination, and supporting studies for resource mobilization
and tools for intra-African trade and cross-border business.
- PC 6- Programme Cluster on AfBC and FARA led interventions for strengthening private sector, financing, and business environment for SHFs and SMEs for upscaling most responsive climate smart technologies, sustainable business and financing models for quality and quantity production and supply to agro- industries; and
- PC 7- Programme Cluster on Institutional
strengthening of the CAAPs Secretariat.
Related: value chain regional level dialogues
The
Europe-Africa Business Forum (EABF)
Technical Assistance (TA) to EC/INTPA[1] will support EABF to reflect on the current GG flagships and priorities[2]. It will take into consideration and look for synergies with the events and activities that are implemented by EABF related stakeholders, such as business organisations (for example, Business Europe, Africa Business Council, Eurochambres, Business Africa). The Europe-Africa Business Forum (EABF) brings together public and private sector representatives from Africa and the European Union. As a regional event, it targets stakeholders from all countries of Africa and the European Union around key topics of common interest for the integration of EU-Africa value chains. Between 2021 and 2027, Team Europe, meaning the EU institutions and EU Member States jointly, will mobilise up to €300 billion of investments in digital, climate and energy, infrastructure, health, education, and research.
The EU-Africa Business
Forum (EABF)[3] has been the
main side event of the EU and the African Union (AU) Summits since 2006. It is
a strategic occasion for EU and African private sectors to identify and/or
consolidate joint opportunities in the spirit of the Comprehensive Strategy
with Africa and the Africa-Europe Alliance for sustainable investment and jobs.
The EABF should become a permanent structure as of 2023, making its concept, at
the same time, more comprehensive. The TA will facilitate a regional dialogue
and collaboration between key EU and Africa private sector stakeholders to
ensure a more effective engagement, business opportunities and policy reforms.
The TA will support value chain regional
level dialogues between the EU and Africa, to strengthen the integration
between the two continents in key sectors. During the inception phase it will
be imperative to support AUC/DARBE in linking up with this initiative and
participated in the agricultural value
chain regional level dialogues.
Food technology expertise
Food technology expertise is indispensable for the
success of African Agro-Parks due to its pivotal role in enhancing food
production, safety, and preservation. Agro-Parks are integrated agricultural
production and processing zones aimed at increasing agricultural productivity
and value addition. Food technologists possess crucial knowledge about food processing techniques, packaging, and
storage methods, ensuring that the agricultural produce from these parks is
not only abundant but also of high quality and safe for consumption.
Their expertise allows for the development of innovative and sustainable ways to process and preserve perishable agricultural products, reducing post-harvest losses and extending the shelf life of foods. Moreover, food technologists can facilitate the creation of value-added products, fostering economic growth by enabling Agro-Parks to tap into diverse markets. By incorporating food technology expertise, African Agro-Parks can enhance food security, boost local economies, and promote sustainable agricultural practices across the continent.
[1] Support
to the permanent structure of the EU-Africa Business Forum: Estimated total value: 15,000,000.00 EUR.
Deadline tenders was 27/09/2023.
[3] The 7th EABF took place in a hybrid format in Brussels on 16-17
February 2022, back-to-back with the EU-Africa Summit, and via an online
platform during the entire week of 14th February 2022. For the 2022 edition,
the overall theme was “Building stronger value chains for sustainable growth
and decent jobs”. https://international-partnerships.ec.europa.eu/eu-africa-business-forum_en
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