Scaling Opportunity Crops Through Policy, Partnerships, and Investment

2 September 2026. Scaling Opportunity Crops Through Policy, Partnerships, and Investment.

The next generation of agricultural growth will not be created by a single crop, institution, or investment.

It will emerge from connected systems that make good opportunities investable and scalable.

Policy can create the enabling environment. Partnerships can connect expertise and incentives. Investment can build the infrastructure and businesses required for competitive value chains. And farmers can turn those opportunities into production, income, and economic transformation.

The challenge now is to move from isolated success stories to scalable models.

One of the objectives of this meeting organised by CropTrust was to bring together different actors advocating for or rolling out activities on Neglected and Underutilized Crops.

Opening remarks: 

• 
  H.E. Moses Vilakati, Commissioner for Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy and Sustainable Environment, African Union 
• Kordula Mehlhart, Head of Division, Federal German Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development 
• Isabella Rae, Agriculture and Food Systems Lead, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Ireland 
• Cristina Miranda Gozálvez, Head of Unit, European Commission – DG International Partnerships See video recording 

Keynote: Dr. Sayed Azam-Ali, Chair of the High Level Panel of Experts - Food and Nutrition Security of the Committee on World Food Security 

Session 1 - Policy: 

• Dr. Clement Adjorlolo, Head of Agriculture and Rural Transformation AUDA-NEPAD
• Mark Kofi Fynn Regional Policy Officer, FAO Regional Office for Africa, including a reference to the the policy optimisation tool

Session 2 - Partnerships: 

• Dr. Julia Sibiya, VACS Capacity Development Lead, CIMMYT. She referred to new varieties of Bambara groundnut in Zimbabwe 
• Michael Ojo, Country Director, Nigeria, at the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN). He referred to the National Food Systems Transformation agenda.
• Dr. Wole Fatunbi, Ag. Director of Research and Innovation, FARA see video recording 
• Dr. Kindie Tesfaye Fantanye, Head of Climate Adaptation, Sustainable Agriculture and Resilience, AGRA - Entry point for investments

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