Agriculture ministers under IGAD advocate resilient food systems

Ministers of Agriculture in the IGAD region have called for regional cooperation, policy coordination to build more resilient food systems.

The call comes at a time when food insecurity in Africa is reaching critical levels due to the challenging weather patterns, declining soil fertility, poor quality seed, and low uptake of fertilizers and agriculture machinery.

Through a press statement issued by IGAD, the ministers made the call at the end of a five-day ministerial meeting on food systems, convened by IGAD and the African Union in Addis Ababa.

The First High-Level Learning Event on the Food Systems Resilience Program for Eastern and Southern Africa that ended on the 6th of March attracted ministers from countries like Malawi, Uganda, Djibouti, Madagascar, Côte D’Ivoire, Ethiopia, Somalia, and Comoros among others.

The ministerial meeting followed a two-and-a-half-day technical learning session, where experts explored key challenges and opportunities in food systems resilience under three thematic areas:

 — Empowering African Food Systems with Digital Technologies – Examining the role of precision agriculture, real-time climate data, and AI in boosting productivity and reducing post-harvest losses.

 — Strengthening Trade Integration – Leveraging trade scorecards and addressing Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) measures to improve agricultural trade.

 — Learning Processes – Facilitating knowledge-sharing among countries to drive sustainable solutions.

Some of the solutions that ministers proposed include leveraging digital innovations – Investing in climate-smart technologies, precision agriculture, artificial intelligence (AI), and real-time data monitoring to optimize farm productivity, minimize post-harvest losses, and improve market efficiency.

Strengthening regional trade integration – Enhancing cross-border trade policies, harmonizing sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) standards, and improving infrastructure to facilitate the movement of agricultural goods across markets and reduce food supply chain disruptions.

Promoting inclusive and sustainable agricultural investments – Expanding access to finance, capacity building, and technology for smallholder farmers, ensuring they can adopt modern farming techniques and compete in larger markets among others.

Speaking at the event, Uganda’s Minister of State for Agriculture, Bright Rwamirama emphasized the need for strong regional collaboration, especially on transboundary pests & diseases, among others.

 He also highlighted the need to recognize the importance of water for agricultural production.