Experts have called for capacity and institutional infrastructural development that can act as shock absorbers to minimise impacts on economies by global spikes in prices of fertilisers and basic commodities.
Agricultural experts spoke at a virtual meeting hosted by African Agricultural Technology Foundation (AATF) to discuss trends, their drivers as well as impact on the sector.
Executive Director of AATF Dr. Canisius Kanangire noted that the impact of the Russia-Ukraine conflict on food security had been concentrated on countries highly dependent on wheat imports from the black sea region.
Kanangire lamented that the crisis exposed the vulnerability of the continent’s food systems.
He added that the direct and indirect impact of the crisis on Africa’s agriculture deserves a closer look, not only on how it negatively impacts the sector but also considering emerging opportunities to rethink African agricultural investment.
He said the Russia-Ukraine conflict has led to the largest commodity price shock since 1973 oil crisis.
National President of All-Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN) Kabir Ibrahim noted that the vulnerability of Africa’s economy to shocks, such as COVID-19, the Russia-Ukraine war and insecurity could be mitigated by evolution of an efficient food system.
According to him, Africa must commit to sizable investments in agriculture to bolster their food systems to avert further stresses and challenges of food and physical insecurity.
He said the Russia-Ukraine war should serve as a wake-up call to Africa if the continent wants to become sustainably competitive and prosperous.
“The smallholder farmers are the engine of agricultural production in Africa. With the low level of mechanisation in the continent, they must be directly subsidised to attain a reasonable level of food sufficiency.”
Executive Chairperson of AKADEMIYA2063 Dr. Ousmane Badiane said Africa needs to understand patterns in global shocks and vulnerability to save livelihoods.
He urged African governments to have institutional frameworks, including technical experts, that allow governments to anticipate and analyse the impacts of the shocks.
Badiane added that the fertiliser production challenges in Africa are due to low purchasing power by smallholder farmers.
He said Africa was still at risk and may not cushion itself because of the high cost of fertiliser production marked by low demand in the continent.
“It is about our capacity to understand the shocks and plan around them. Even if we were to double Africa’s agricultural production today, the shocks in the global market would be transmitted to our local markets,” he pointed out.