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Building productive, nutritious, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable African food systems accelerates the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030.
This was revealed today by Hon Ildephonse Musafiri, Rwanda’s Minister of Agriculture and Animal Resources during the official opening of the Africa Food Systems Forum (AFS Forum) 2024 in Kigali, Rwanda.
He called for the promotion and mainstreaming of multi-dimensional approaches that encompass agricultural productivity, food and nutrition security, sustainability, and economic development.
“The AFS summit, 2024 (running from 2nd to 6th), is expected to gather about 5,000 participants who will share lessons and take practical actions to build productive, nutritious, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable African food systems that have the power to accelerate the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030.
“The AFS summit will entail plenary and parallel sessions as well as field visits to key Rwanda flagship agricultural projects across the country,” he said.
Addressing the same gathering, the Rt. Hon. Prime Minister of Rwanda, Dr. Edouard Ngirente underscored the importance of the Forum in driving the transition to resilient food systems across Africa.
He said this year’s Forum is particularly significant as it precedes critical milestones for the continent since next year (2025), the African Union’s Malabo Declaration will elapse while there remains less than 6 years to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.
“Food is a fundamental human right, yet, across our continent, it remains a daily struggle to access sufficient, nutritious, and affordable food. Some reports indicate that over 32% of all African children under the age of five are stunted against a global average of 22%. In addition, over 20% of our population is experiencing severe food insecurity. This means that nearly one in five Africans lacks regular access to enough nutritious food for a healthy life.
“Consequently, malnutrition weakens the immune system and increases vulnerability to diseases among our people, and it also impairs physical and cognitive development in our children. This results directly in higher healthcare costs, reduced workforce productivity, and diminished capacity for innovation,” Hon Ngirente said.