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African opportunities for sustainable
food systems explored by ARC
S
ustainable improvement of food and nutrition security and
the livelihoods of African producers are at issue when 23
African and European research partners collaborate on a
long-term research and innovation partnership. The focus
is on sustainable intensification of the agro-food system in Africa.
Although the current food production systems have enabled a
substantial increase in food production, the farming practices have
also impacted the environment. In addition, many people still do not
have enough to eat and cannot escape poverty.
How this affects the whole African agro-food system will be includ-
ed in the investigations as 23 research and innovation institutes
from 21 countries collaborate in this new initiative, called PRO-
IntensAfrica.
It is projected that the expected growth in the world population
from 7 to 9 billion and the changing diets will require 70% more
food by 2050. There is no single solution to production increase,
so a diversity of pathways for sustainable intensification needs to
be explored and exploited, explains Dr Huub Löffler from Nether-
land’s Wageningen University and Research Centre (WUR), the co-
ordinator of the initiative.
Tailor-made routes to sustainability
The initiative starts off in a situation where many routes towards
sustainable food systems have already been advocated in literature.
However, the difficulty of sustainable intensification lies in each
food system’s requirement to meet their specific supply and demand.
As such, high input farming might be suitable for a specific region
while organic farming is more suitable for another region.
The PROIntensAfrica initiative will go beyond the debate of best
systems for sustainable intensification in Africa. They will combine
elements of different systems, yielding into innovative systems to
optimally meet specific requirements, says Dr Yemi Akinbamijo,
executive director of the Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa
(FARA).
Pooling resources
Pooling African and European research resources is perceived as
the best way to align existing research and instigate new research
initiatives. Joint programming is also one of the main instruments
of the European Commission to accomplish more synergy and
increase the effectiveness of resources. The ambition of PRO-
IntensAfrica is to formulate a universal research agenda and co-
develop mechanisms for an effective long-term partnership.
Therefore, pooling resources for PROIntensAfrica, is not only
about science, but also about policy and funding. Subsequently,
the following partnership proposal for IntensAfrica will need to
meet the national and international policies. According to the
philosophy of the future IntensAfrica programme, no one model is
better than another.
“There are controversies and we will take them on board, but our
role will not be to act as a judge. However, the research questions
and knowledge generated will serve as fuel for the debate,” says Dr
Philippe Petithuguenin from CIRAD, a French research organisation.
Consultation, case studies and stakeholder panel workshops are
a major part of the activities of PROIntensAfrica. A wide range of
strategic stakeholders will be invited to contribute to the activities
and the agenda. Communication is considered crucial to develop
and enhance the interactive dialogue between all stakeholders.
The PROIntensAfrica project kicked off with a workshop in Accra,
Ghana, in April this year. The project will develop into the Intens-
Africa programme within two years. This is an excellent oppor-
tunity to contribute to the sustainable intensification of food and
nutrition security on the continent and provides fertile ground
for revitalising Africa’s own research efforts in solving the global
challenge of food and nutrition security.
RELEVANT
SHADRACK MOEPHULI,
president and CEO: Agricultural Research Council