Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) consultant, Mandi Rukuni said by 2025 the continents agriculture is poised to grow faster and become food secure due to the increase in
demand for food within the region.
Speaking during an interview, on Tuesday, Rukuni said the demand for farm produce locally is on the increase, with the urban sector spearheading the increase.
“On average, figures on the continent show that 60 percent of the food being consumed is being produced by smallholder farmers and being purchased from the market. What this means is that this demand of food will make the smallholder farmers produce for commercial purposes as opposed to the subsistence farming that has rocked our continent for years,” he said.
In a report titled, sustaining Caadp momentum by Rukuni, the shift in the demand for food by the urban areas is an opportunity for smallholder farmers to begin to diversify as farming cannot be the only source of job in the region.
“As the opportunities begin to grow, smallholder farmers can begin to process and value add these foods there by increasing job opportunities for other farmers. By doing so, the continent is expanding its net wider, of course we need the support of the government to continue support the farmers through capacity building,” reads part of the report in part.
According to the report, the shifts in food demand further shows that people have money in their pockets and are willing to part away in order to buy produce.
“Some ten years, the percentage was only 30, now it has doubled and I think this is a good opportunity for Africa to expand and begin to show fruits of its hard labour. We cannot afford to leave our arable
land idle, and continuously beg for donors, it’s just not on, we need to act and use these figures for progress,” said Rukuni.
The Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) was established as part of NEPAD in July 2003 and focuses on improving and promoting agriculture across Africa.
