Food systems are under immense pressure globally with Africa heavily affected due to climate shocks, disrupted supply chains and rising conflict, Executive Secretary of the UN Economic Commission for Africa Claver Gatete has said.
Speaking at Africa Food Systems Forum being held in Dakar, Senegal, Gatete said rising costs of food and inputs have left millions hungry, even in countries that once enjoyed relative stability.
“Our continent holds more than 60 percent of the world’s uncultivated arable land and abundant water resources, yet we imported food worth up to $115 billion in 2024,” Gatete said in a statement issued on Tuesday.
He said Africa is home to the youngest population in the world, with energy and ideas to drive transformation, yet too many of its youth remain unemployed.
According to the executive secretary, climate change has threatened Africa more than any other region in the world even though the continent contributes less than 4 percent of global climate emissions, aggravating hunger in the continent.
“How can it be that a continent that should be the breadbasket of the world remains unable to feed its own people?” he questioned.
After more than a decade of Comprehensive Africa Agricultural Development Programme (CAADP) implementation, Africa has seen stronger institutions, better policy alignment and agricultural growth, yet progress has fallen short, with hunger still rising.
Gatete said it is a welcome development that the newly adopted CAADP Strategy and Action Plan (2026–2035) seeks to increase agrifood output by 45 percent and to reduce post-harvest losses by 50% by the end of 2035.
The declaration also seeks to increase the share of locally processed food to 35 percent of agri-food GDP within the same period.
Financing is therefore crucial as the era of abundant aid is over, said the executive secretary, noting that African governments need to be committed to strengthening accountability, mobilizing domestic resources and private investment to cut our huge food import bill and reducing illicit financial flows.
MG/abj/APA