Platform for African – European Partnership in Agricultural Research for Development

Monday, March 18, 2024

3rd African Agribusiness Leaders Dialogue (AALD3)

13 March 2024
, Accra – The 3rd African Agribusiness Leaders Dialogue (AALD3), held online and in person in Accra, has highlighted the barrier-breaking role of young African 'agripreneurs' in the agrifood sector.
Hosted by FAO Regional Office for Africa, AALD3 gathered perspectives from the private sector ahead of FAO’s 33rd Session of the Regional Conference for Africa (ARC33) to be held 18-20 April in Rabat, Morocco. ARC33 will bring together Ministers of Agriculture and other relevant portfolios from across Africa to drive agenda-setting in agrifood systems transformation in Africa, and AALD3 will help to bring the private sector perspective to those discussions. In readiness for ARC33, participants at AALD3 developed a private sector declaration that will be presented at the regional conference. It comes after African civil society organisations held a similar dialogue and developed a civil society declaration for ARC33.

Extract of the agenda:

Bridging Finance Gaps" | " Réduire les écarts de financement "

speaker headshotDzifa Amegashie
Head of Corporate & Investor Relations & Partnerships, CalBank PLC
speaker headshotVenan A. Sondo
Executive Director, Chaint Afrique
speaker headshotMaryanne Gichanga
CEO & Co-Founder, AgriTech Analytics Ltd
speaker headshotTenemba Anna Samaké
Chief Executive Officer, MBC Africa
speaker headshotKojo Akoto Boateng
Moderator, Scio Network

Bridging Finance Gaps for Developing Agribusiness

  1. Topic 1: Financing and Empowering the Agrifood Sector Through Innovation
  2. Topic 2: Sustainability and Green Innovations in Agrifood Systems. 
  3. Topic 3: Enhancing Impact Through Complementary Business and Technical Advisory Services.
The event included panel discussions with a range of business leaders, including young trail-blazing entrepreneurs in the agribusiness sector. 
  • Affiong Williams, who runs Nigeria’s largest dried fruit company ReelFruit, said a key to her early success was partnering with like-minded entrepreneurs and learning from others in the region.
  • Sakina Usengimana, who runs Afri-Foods in Rwanda and is chairperson of the Rwanda Youth in Agri-Business Forum (RYAF), raised some of the challenges she faces in operating a cross-border business such as currency conversions, but praised Rwandan authorities for removing some trade barriers and creating a more supporting ecosystem for new agribusinesses. “Removing barriers and creating ecosystem support for young agripreneurs is vital for agribusinesses to flourish,” she said.
  • Dzifa Amegashie from CalBank said women entrepreneurs often face an unconscious bias if they operate in the agribusiness sector, and that her bank has established a ‘women’s desk’ to better support women agripreneurs.
  • Other speakers at the event were Aisata Guiro from Accelerate Africa, Maryanne Gichanga from AgriTech, Tenemba Anna Samaké from MBC Africa and the Aspen Network of Development Entrepreneurs (ANDE) West Africa Steering Committee, and Venan Sondo from Chaint Afrique.

The 33rd FAO Regional Conference for Africa 


The 33rd FAO Regional Conference for Africa will put a spotlight on the FAO Strategic Framework 2022-2031 which encapsulates FAO’s work into the four betters: better production, better nutrition, a better environment, and a better life, leaving no one behind. The conference theme is Resilient agrifood systems and inclusive rural transformation.

Find out more about the 33rd Regional Conference for Africa

Regional Multi-actor Research Network (RMRN) Consortium on Agroecology


The Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa (FARA) and the The Regional Universities Forum for Capacity Building in Agriculture (RUFORUM) alongside the Agroecology Consortium, EC-Joint Research Centre (EC-JRC) and the EC Directorate General’s Department for International Partnerships (DG INTPA) have launched the Regional Multi-actor Research Network (RMRN) Consortium on Agroecology to support the Regional Centres of Excellence (RCoEs) related to Green Transition, as part of the FARA and RUFORUM component on agroecology.

AGRICONSULTING EUROPE S.A will assure the Technical support to INTPA for the coordination of the “Scientific and technological support to the Regional centres of Excellence related to Green Transition (INTPA/2023/EA-RP/0016)

The RMRN Project is funded by the European Union (EU) as part of its Regional Multi-year Indicative Programme (MIP) for Africa (2021-2027) (# 75 pages). The MIP will support strengthening the consortia of Africa based institutions to lead interventions in Africa in several domains including multi-stakeholder partnerships to bring agroecological innovations to scale, using co-learning, co-creation, and multi-stakeholder approach. 
Page 29: Sustainable Agri-food systems. Result 3.1: Agricultural research-action lead to innovation, supporting the agro-ecological transition for climate resilient and sustainable agri-food systems; monitoring and learning is shared. The EU will support testing, scaling and sharing innovation in support to the agro-ecological transition and to sustainable aquatic systems, towards heathier diets by working with key regional networks and centres of excellence such as FARA and global networks based in Africa (CGIAR centres) including CORAF, ASARECA, CCARDESA, to name only a few). Partnerships will be fostered with international and European research and innovation organisations, farmers’ organisations as well as associations in the fisheries and aquaculture sectors and private sector operators in agriculture, fisheries and food value chains. The topics covered would include pests and diseases, pesticides risk reduction, the contribution of forests and fisheries to food security and nutrition, resilient crop varieties, orphan crops (linked to the dedicated consortium), research and monitoring on land use / biodiversity, research, knowledge and data in support of Africa’s Great Green Wall. Building on ongoing initiatives such as the EU-Africa Food and Nutrition Security and Sustainable Agriculture (FNSSA-Partnership), there is a strong potential for Team Europe Initiatives.  
Page 64Sustainable Agri-food systems. Results 3.1 to 3.5
The proposed actions will promote partnership with relevant institutions such as Farmer organizations under the Pan African Farmers Organization (PAFO), extension institutions under the African Forum for Agricultural Advisory services (AFAAS), NGOs, CSOs, the private sector, and financial institutions.
  • Regional Multi-actor Research Network (RMRN) on agroecology in West and Central Africa (WCA).
  • Regional Multi-actor Research Network (RMRN) Consortium on Agroecology in the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) Region
During the launch the RMRN project implementing partners and participants were granted first hand experiences and interactions with agro-ecological value chains at NARO Uganda as well as exposure to wide ranges of coffee and cocoa products during the agro-ecology familiarization field visit at The National Coffee Research Institute NaCORI.

Background

The aim of the RMRN is to build excellence in research and education based on innovative approaches by mobilising and engaging with a diversity of stakeholders ranging from universities, agricultural research institutions, multi-disciplinary teams of researchers, multi-sectoral private-sector actors, farmer’s organisations and the civil society. The ultimate goal is to develop sustainably productive and resilient agri-food systems, able to address current aspirations and emerging challenges (food security, climate change, biodiversity loss, land degradation, water scarcity).

The RMRN overall objective is to contribute to a sustainable agri-food system transition based on agroecological principles. The transition towards agroecological agri-food systems is an effective pathway supported by a broad range of multi-disciplinary and multi-sectoral actors such as researchers, policy makers, civil society, traders, and consumers. It requires new knowledge, competences, and policies to address complex situations, as well as challenges and co-create solutions based on agroecological principles and the integration of scientific and local knowledge.

The Specific Objectives are to:
  • Strengthen the scientific and technological capacities of RMRN Consortium to produce, collect, access, process, share data / information guided by agroecology principles and using a gender-sensitive approach.
  • Increase the RMRN’s Consortium contribution to scientific knowledge and innovation for agroecology through transformative quality multi-disciplinary research.
  • Enhance the RMRN Consortium support to agroecology practitioners, scientists, consumers, and policymakers with a gender-sensitive approach.
PRIORITY TOPICS 
  • Agrobiodiversity to support agroecological processes. Agrobiodiversity (crops, animals, mycorrhiza/bacteria) is key to support ecological processes towards healthy soils, diversified cropping and farming systems for better production and resilience, Page 7 sur 15 diversified landscapes to provide eco-systemic services.
  • Soil health to improve production and eco-system services. Soils are the basis of food and non-food production and generate eco-system services (water cycle, carbon storage, etc.). There is a need to address knowledge gaps regarding ecological processes and the development of solutions
    based on ecological processes (including bio- and organic fertilisers).
  • Integrated pest management based on agroecological processes. Pest and diseases are challenging production in Africa. Developing new solutions based on ecological processes is a priority to avoid an overwhelming dependence on chemical pesticides.
  • Water management to address climate change. In the context of increasing climate change, the need for better monitoring and innovative solutions is more and more important to deal with risks (drought and flood) and to manage water for agricultural production.
  • Adapted mechanisation for small-scale farmers to increase productivity and farmers’ incomes. Low labour productivity is a key issue to be addressed to improve production and make farmers activities more attractive and less painful especially for youth and women.
  • Digitalisation for agroecology. Digital tools are developed and more and more used in the
    agricultural sector in Africa to monitor crops and manage resources such as pasture or water, to facilitate access to markets (price information, traceability, etc.) and services (inputs, advisory services, etc.). 
  • Value chains to scale agroecology. It is a priority to scale agroecology through value chains able to valorise agricultural production based on agroecological principles to increase farmers’ incomes. 
  • Innovation service supports. Farmers need support to develop and improve agroecological farming systems in a changing context. However, advisory services and other innovation support services (incubators, innovation platforms, etc.) are to be adapted or strengthened to provide relevant and effective services with a holistic farm approach, based on the principles of agroecology and aimed at strengthening capacities and valorising local knowledge.
  • Institutions and policies as drivers for agroecological transitions. The food system transition depends on the institutional and policy landscape. Global, continental, and national policies drive the food systems transition and may shape an enabling environment to scale agroecology. 
At the end of the three years of the project, technical capacities and skill of researchers and scientists would have been built to carry out scientific studies in agroecology; improved infrastructural access by the RMRNs to carry out quality research and studies in Agroecology; available and accessible quality agroecology knowledge products and information; platform for knowledge exchange and information sharing/exchange would have been established; improved research-policy linkage; strengthened collaboration between the RMRNs and the Pan-African Network for economic Analysis of Policies (PANAP), and increased Advocacy for agroecology principles and practices

Friday, March 15, 2024

Timbuctoo : Linking agricultural innovation to start-up accelerators

Timbuctoo – UNDP’s bold, pan-African innovative and far-reaching initiative to spark a start-up revolution in Africa, is entering its second phase.

This programme was initiated by UNDP Africa in 2021. Its primary aim is to get a lot of private and public sector partners to help set up eight Timbuktoo Hubs in places that are known to have strong startup ecosystems, such as Accra, Nairobi, Cape Town, Lagos, Dakar, Kigali, Casablanca, and Cairo. 

Each Hub will be run privately and will focus on a single industry vertical, such as Fintech, Agritech, Healthtech, Greentech, Creatives, Tradetech and Logistics, Smart Cities and Mobility, or Tourismtech

This programme is built around a Parent Fund of catalytic grant capital, which, along with catalytic partners who care about making an impact, would pay for a network of Hubs and a Headquarters
  • Rwanda invests US$3 million to start the timbuktoo Africa Innovation Fund which will be hosted in Kigali.
  • Currently, Africa’s share of global startup value stands at just 0.2 percent, compared to 2 percent of global trade value. The vast majority, 89 percent, of venture capital coming into Africa is foreign capital and 83 percent is concentrated in four countries: Nigeria, Kenya, South Africa, and Egypt. Over 60 percent of capital flowing to one sector, fintech.
  • The Parent Fund will give guarantees or first-loss capital in the form of a small share to each of the commercially focused Hub Venture Funds. timbuktoo’s ambition is to mobilize and invest US$ 1 billion of catalytic and commercial capital to transform 100 million livelihoods and create 10 million dignified new jobs.
  • What makes timbuktoo unique is its design, which blends commercial and catalytic capital to de-risk private investment, with a pan-African approach to supporting startups, while also focusing on the whole ecosystem, engaging and deepening the linkages between government policy, universities, corporates, development partners, catalytic partners, and commercial investors.

Accelerators and innovation labs:

Promoted by the UNDP, timbuktoo aims to address critical gaps and work with African governments,
investors, corporates, and universities, to support the African startup ecosystem.
  • ExampleLesotho innovation lab.
    The Lesotho Accelerator Lab posted a pesticide discovery by a maize farmer. On his innovation, the farmer uses a powdered pesticide made from crushed herd of elegant grasshoppers which fed and destroyed crops on his fields. Thus far, engagements on the solution were positive, however, more insights are required to shape the experiment design. The findings from the various bioassay analyses conducted found that elegant grasshoppers have chemical compounds, which gives them pesticidal-like characteristics.  Some notable issues still requiring further intelligence include sustainability of the solution, social ethics and acceptance in Lesotho. If the Lesotho Accelerator Lab can obtain a commercial solution based on this innovation, there will be more value addition to the Lesotho agricultural sector outcomes on possible organic production practices.

University Innovation Pods (UNIPODS) across 13 African countries

The first phase  (2022-2024) of timbuktoo of this 10 year programme, entailed designing the model, establishing University Innovation Pods (UNIPODS) across 13 African countries.
 
Major bottlenecks stifling the emergence of new enterprises from the innovation ecosystem are:
  1. Limited linkages between academia and industry due to fragmentation of various players and resources in the technology and product development value chain.
  2. Inadequate specialized facilities and human capital to support technology development, product development and commercialization in various innovation clusters.
  3. Absence of necessary regulatory policies to support growth of clusters of technology development within the ecosystem.
  4. Inadequate private sector participation in enhancement of the innovation ecosystem.
  5. Limited capacity for policy implementation in the national innovation ecosystem.
  6. Inequality in distribution of innovation and research opportunities – most being urban based.
Through timbuktoo, UNIPODS provide young innovators with a Maker’s Space, Design Space and Collaboration Space to create a multidisciplinary approach to innovation, as well as a Technology Transfer Office to facilitate the transition of research and prototypes to market and allow for enterprises to be built from these innovations. UNDP also supports National ICT Hubs as a space for Uganda’s youth innovators, entrepreneurs and start-ups to ideate, collaborate, create, commercialize and scale up their innovative ideas that have the potential of accelerating the digital transformation journey.

A first generation of UniPods (2022-2023) were set up in:

  • UniPod South Sudan: Worth $1.2million, the UNIPOD facility is furnished with equipment for; woodwork lab, Agri/Food Tech Lab, Textiles/Fabrics, Electrical & Electronics Lab, Audio Visual & Augmented Reality/Visual Reality (AR/VR) Lab, and other spaces.
  • UniPod Liberia: 28/07/2023. The US$600,000 (six hundred thousand) UniPod Project funded by UNDP, will be hosted at the River View Complex, Fendall, University of Liberia. In addition, an Orange Digital Center in Congo Town in Monrovia will feed into the UniPod at the University of Liberia in partnership with Icampus. The center will contain makerspace (electronic, textiles and 3D printing, digital media production etc), computers and accessories with workstation (engineering, environment, agriculture, business).
  • UniPod MaliLe Centre d’Innovation Technologique Timbuktoo (CITT). In Mali, the choice fell on the Abderhamane Baba Touré National School of Engineers (ENI-ABT) to host the center. ENI-ABT is a public university establishment with the technical prerequisites necessary for rapid adoption of the technological innovation center model. The UniPOD is made up of thematic prototyping laboratories (textiles, energy, foodtech, robotics, etc.), laboratories or design spaces, offices and collaborative work spaces,. The Accelerator Lab which is the UNDP innovation unit in Mali, will support the Pod in networking and technical support in the programming and organization of events. It commissioned in July 2022 a mapping study of the actors and solutions of the ecosystem.
  • UniPod Nigeria: The goal of UniPOD is for more than 1,000 startups to grow to a significant size and have a positive effect on more than 100 million people's lives and the environment, generating a ten-fold return of over ten billion dollars in wealth and value creation for Africa's economies. Startups, investors, government partners, innovation and accelerators hubs all participated in substantive conversations about timbuktoo and the Nigerian startup ecosystem during the timXLagos event (17/08/2022) which was hosted in collaboration with Ventures Park and Impact hub Lagos.
  • Mauritania UniPod: UNDP Accelerator Lab Mauritania brought together diverse, stimulated minds, to discover new ways of dealing with Informality in the agricultural sector, Access to Healthcare and Waste Management in a collective intelligence process. 
    • The mapping process led  to discover a local innovator (RiMCompost) working on transforming waste from palm trees to compost. This innovator uses locally available materials to increase soil fertility, knowing that only 5% of Mauritania’s total land surface is arable. Agronomists, governments officials, agricultural specialists, gardeners, and farmers were brought together to discuss and exchange ideas on composting in Mauritania. At the end of the discussion, it was suggested to first test the compost in a chemical laboratory to see the different nutritional components and conduct an experimentation – one farm with this compost and another farm with imported compost–. This allow to make a valuable comparison to see what exactly works. If the experiment is successful, the product will be certified through the Ministry of Trade, Industry, Handicrafts and Tourism and a scaling- up plan will be developed. 
    • During the collective intelligence sessions, Accelerator Lab-Mauritania brought together, small scale producers, developers, wholesale buyers, experts, and government officials to discuss collectively the possibility of developing an innovative digital platform, that will integrate and bundle the products of small-scale producers into large quantity for market. This solution will address the challenges faced by small crops and livestock entrepreneurs in the areas of farm input supply, financing, market access, and decision support tools.
  • Benin UniPod. Pôle d'Innovation et de Technologie à l'Université d'Abomey. For its implementation in Benin, UNDP has mobilized funding of approximately 3 million USD for a period of three years. At least 50 innovative companies are to be created and managed by 2027, based on revolutionary products prototyped and produced within the Abomey Calavi Innovation and Technology Pole. - See: Opérationnalisation de l’initiative Timbuktoo à l’Université d’Abomey
  • Guinee UniPodPôle d’Innovation et de Technologie au sein l'Institut Supérieur de Technologie (IST) de Mamou. For the first year, there will be 15 incubators in the field of food technology, financial technology and electronics, industrial mechanics and creative and visual arts.
  • Togo UniPod Pôle d’Innovation et de Technologie


A second generation of UniPods (2024) are currently set up in:


Zambia UniPod

UNDP launched the Mukuba UniPod, a University Innovation Pod at Copperbelt University in Kitwe, Zambia. This transformative initiative marks a significant milestone in harnessing the potential of Zambia's youth, providing a dedicated space for students, entrepreneurs, and innovators to collaborate and transform ideas to minimum viable products that can drive sustainable development. 
  • Named ‘Mukuba’ which means mineral rich ore in Bemba, one of Zambia’s local languages, the Mukuba UniPod is strategically situated within Copperbelt University, at the epicenter of Zambia's academic and entrepreneurial ecosystem. 
  • This strategic location not only fosters synergies between academia and industry but also
    positions the UniPod to capitalize on Zambia's burgeoning mining sector — which is increasingly becoming key in climate action as the demand for rare-earth minerals grows.
  • One of the technologies housed in the Mukuba UniPod is an Electric Vehicle (EV) Training Kit which provides innovators like Mwanza a great opportunity to learn the technology behind the design of efficient EV batteries and powertrains. (In 2011, a student team designed an electric car and scaled up to become a major company named Kiira Motors).
  • renewable energy-saving stove, the Slag stove, aims to reduce household energy costs while promoting sustainability in local communities.
  • The UniPod also provides assistance in commercializing their concept, courtesy of the Technology Transfer Office situated within the UniPod.

Malawi UniPod


06/03/2024. UNDP Malawi has partnered with the Malawi University of Business and Applied Sciences (MUBAS), providing both technical expertise and financial support to establish a University Innovation Pod (UniPod) in Malawi
  • The timbuktoo UniPod, stands as a distinctive venture situated at Malawi University of Business and Applied Sciences. 
  • The UniPod encompasses various key spaces, including a collaborative ideation space, Design Lab and a Makerspace featuring five specialized labs: electronics fabrication, mechanical fabrication, Computer Numerical Control Fabrication, wood workshop, digital creative arts lab
  • Furthermore, the UniPod encompasses a business nursery and a dedicated technology transfer office, further enriching its offerings.
  • Its primary objective is to provide essential support to youthful innovators by providing them with cutting-edge infrastructure that caters to innovation prototyping, experimentation, and small-scale manufacturing. 
  • The UniPod aims to foster the creation of prototypes that hold significant potential for transforming into commercially viable products hence provides an alternative for export substitution. 
  • Watch the recording of the opening.


Uganda UniPod




In 2022, the UNDP Uganda Accelerator Lab team embarked on an assessment of Uganda's Startup Ecosystem in Uganda, helping inform design of the National Startup Strategy Roadmap. Cognizant of contributions of the Startup community to Uganda’s economic growth, especially through emerging fintech, food-tech, software, and data startups, the sector is still ranked low as indicated by Startup Blink 2022 rankings.


Launch of the initiative at the World Economic Forum in Davos



  • HE Paul Kagame, President of Rwanda

    “We cannot accept that another generation of African young people do not have the tools to reach their full potential. With timbuktoo’s billion-dollar target, we can create more opportunities for Africa’s youth to put their talent and creativity to good use.”

  • HE William Ruto, President of Kenya 
  • HE Nana Akuffo-Addo, President of Ghana

    “For many African countries, our foremost challenge now is to ensure we put in place the right structures to enable young Africans to create innovative and compelling businesses that can contribute significantly to job creation and sustainable economic growth”

  • HE Bola Ahmed Tinubu, President of Nigeria
  • Mr Achim Steiner, UNDP Administrator 

    “timbuktoo is a new model of development. We are gathering key actors to push on all fronts at the same time. From startup-friendly legislation, global-class startup building, and de-risking capital to increase investment, to the UniPods – University Innovation Pods - across Africa, we aim to fill critical gaps and support the startup ecosystem. This will enable innovations to grow and benefit people in Africa and elsewhere on the planet”

  • Ms Ahunna Eziakonwa, UNDP Africa Director 

    “A knowledge-driven African economy can transform the continent, far beyond even the wealth of the resources that lie beneath its ground and on its land. It is a true revolution. timbuktoo will turn ideas and nascent innovations into meaningful scaling and disruptive pan-African enterprises that attract global and local investment, generating wealth and wellbeing for millions of people in Africa and beyond, focusing on innovative solutions for people and planet”.

  • Dr Eleni Gabre-Madhin, UNDP Africa Chief Innovation Officer 
  • Mr Mahktar Diop, CEO, International Finance Corporation 
  • Mr James Manyika, SVP, Google 
  • Ms Courtney Powell, COO, 500 Global 
  • Mr Samaila Zubeiru, CEO, Africa Finance Corporation 
  • Ms Temie Giwa-Tobosun, CEO, LifeBank




Now the initiative goes into high drive in three key areas:

  • crowding in investments to the Fund; 
  • building the 8 thematic hubs across the continent that will provide ecosystem support for young innovators working in the following sectors 
  • and expanding UNIPODs to new locations in Africa.
  1. Agritech; Ghana
  2. HealthTech; Rwanda
  3. GreenTech; Kenya
  4. TradeTech (and logistics); Egypt
  5. TourismTech and EdTech; Senegal
  6. FinTech: Nigeria
  7. Creatives South Africa
  8. Smart Cities (and mobility); Morocco

Resource


AgFunder (2023) Africa AgriFoodTech Investment Report 2023 # 56 p.

AgFunderNews reports on the evolution of the global food and agriculture system. By going beyond the
headlines, it analyze the people, companies and technologies aiming to improve human and planetary health. Publishing daily news, its team of award winning journalists delivers deeper insight on the growing foodtech, agtech and climate tech industries. A multimedia publication, AgFunderNews is a division of AgFunder Inc, one of the world’s most active agrifoodtech venture capital firms
  • Investment in African agrifoodtech startups reached a record-breaking $636 million in 2022, a 25% year-over-year increase which bucked the global venture capital decline. But investor sentiment changed in 2023 with just $99 million raised in the first half, down 77% compared to the first half of 2022.
  • African agrifoodtech funding is on the decline in 2023 after a record-breaking 2022, when investment reached $636 million, a 25% year-over-year increase. 
  • Funding in the first half of 2023 reached just $99 million across 51 deals, down from $429 million across 89 deals in H1 2021. 
  • Three countries – Kenya, Nigeria and Egypt – cumulatively raised $546.8 million, or 86% of total funding in 2022. Kenya was the most active country in 2022, overtaking Nigeria to close $280.4 million in investment across 38 rounds. This was boosted by a few large deals. Nigerian agrifoodtech deals were similar in number to Kenya with 35 deals amounting to $154 million. 
  • In H1 2023, Kenyan and Nigerian startups raised nearly the same amount of funding at $41 million and $45 million respectively. Kenyan agrifoodtech startups have raised the most in the past 10 years at $608 million. That’s one third of the $1.8 billion of total funding to African agrifoodtech since 2013. Midstream Technologies was the best-funded category, raising $184.8 million in 2022. However it did so over fewer deals (down 31% YoY) due to the highest average deal size across categories. 
  • Kenya’s Wasoko raised the biggest round of 2022, bringing in $125 million for its technology connecting small shops to the digital economy. Thanks to Wasoko, In-store Retail & Restaurant Tech was the best-funded downstream category in 2022, raising a total of $182 million across 25 deals, a 434% YoY increase in funding across fewer deals than 2021. 
  • Agribusiness Marketplaces & Fintech was the strongest upstream category in 2022 reaching $160 million across 31 deals, a 413% and 29% increase respectively YoY. 
  • Africa has few innovators in globally strong categories such as Farm Management Software, Sensing & IoT and Innovative Foods. The former raised just $3 million and the latter under $1 million in 2022. However, both categories closed more deals, potentially highlighting growing activity. Median growth-stage deal sizes in African agrifoodtech – $19 million – are still well below the global median.

Thursday, March 14, 2024

Leveraging collaboration with financial institutions to accelerate transition to circular economies

27 February 2024. Nairobi, Kenya. The event ''Leveraging effective and inclusive collaboration with financial institutions to accelerate the transition to more circular economies'' was organized as an official side-event of the Sixth UN Environment Assembly

In line with the UNEA-6 theme, this event discussed the pivotal role of partnering with financial institutions to catalyze effective, sustainable, multilateral action on accelerating the transition to circular economies, to address the triple planetary crisis.

During this event the African Circular Economy Alliance, the Circular Economy Coalition for Latin America and the Caribbean, Circular STEP and financial institutions explored how governments can increase effectiveness and impact of their efforts towards circularity by partnering with financial institutions and unlocking private finance. Such partnerships are key in driving multilateral action towards more circular economies, as financial institutions may guide investments and financing towards technological innovations, knowledge transfer and incentivize businesses to adopt more circular practices and business models.

Extract from the agenda:  Reflections from Financial Institutions

  • Ms Valerie Hickey, Global Director of Environment, Natural Resources and the Blue Economy, World Bank
  • Ms Davinah Milenge, Principal Programme Coordinator, Climate Change and Green Growth Department, African Development Bank @1:00:30

    "How did the AFDB get involved in the African Circular Economy Alliance"

  • Mr Nicola Pochettino, Director of the Environment and Natural Resources Department, European Investment Bank
  • Ms Liesel Van Ast, Deputy Head, UNEP Finance Initiative

 


Related:

18 April 2024 at 9:00-12:00 CEST (UTC+2). Enhancing Circularity in Africa’s mining sector. ACCELERATOR SESSION Location: K1, 1 Avenue du port - 1000 Brussels, Belgium / Online

Resource: 

ACEA (2021) Five Big Bets for theCircular Economy in Africa African Circular Economy Alliance INSIGHT REPORT APRIL 2021, #46 p.
 

African Opportunity Crops: nutritious and climate resilient

14 March 2024
. 01:30 PM African Opportunity Crops: nutritious and climate resilient.
The Vision for Adapted Crops and Soils (VACS) was launched in February 2023, in partnership with the African Union, FAO, and U.S. Department of State, with the goal of advancing more climate-resilient and nutritious food systems in Africa. 
  • A team of researchers from AgMIP, based at the Climate School, participate in VACS, conducting research to better understand how African opportunity crops can be used to address the challenges that African food systems face under climate change.
  • Why and how did nutritionists, plant breeders, climate modelers, soil scientists, economists – 60 global experts – decide on these crops.
AgMIP was chosen to lead the initial phase of crop-climate modeling work, the results of which are visualized on this website. The selection process for crops was informed by scientific data and expert opinions, ensuring a balance of priorities across different scientific disciplines and stakeholder interests. This collaborative approach is critical for developing an inclusive and effective strategy to address the nutritional needs and environmental challenges in Africa.

VACS is part of Feed the Future, the U.S. government's global hunger and food security initiative, and supports the implementation of the U.S. Global Food Security Strategy (2022-2026). It contributes to the President's Emergency Plan for Adaptation and Resilience (PREPARE) and advances the commitments made in the U.S.-AU Joint Statement on Food Security at the 2023 U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit.

To join the community of practice GlobalFoodSecurity@state.gov
  • Namukolo Covic, ILRI, President of African Nutrition Society
  • Cynthia Rosenzweig, AgMIP, Co-Founder; Columbia Climate School
  • Ibrahim Assane Mayaki, African Union Special Envoy for Food Systems
  • Lynnette Neufeld, FAO, Director of the Food and Nutrition Division
  • Cary Fowler, U.S. Special Envoy for Global Food Security
  • Roy Steiner, The Rockefeller Foundation, Senior Vice President, Food Initiative
  • Laura Aghilarre, Deputy Director General for Development Cooperation, Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Resource: 


The Vision for Adapted Crops and Soils (or “VACS”) brings together dedicated communities and individuals from research, advocacy, and policy to shine a light on opportunities that opportunity crops provide to build more resilient and food systems. 

Scaling up production and access to more diverse, climate-resilient crop varieties that support good nutrition and better livelihoods is a goal shared across national, regional, and international communities. 

VACS has gained important visibility, including from the U.S. Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, which has galvanized further international support. 

This report outlines the guiding concepts of the VACS approach, provides an overview of the research conducted as part of VACS through crop-modeling and evidence synthesis approaches, and recommends areas of focus for the movement going forward as well as ways to engage in VACS.



This report is an in-depth crop analysis designed to provide a rigorous evidence base to the global community. By conducting a holistic assessment of a variety of wellresearched crops (e.g., maize, cassava, soybean and tomato), compared to a non-exhaustive list of neglected and underutilized crops (e.g., opportunity crops, such as bambara groundnut and fonio), it aims to provide actionable insights into the crops that are best equipped to provide stable and nutritious diets in the face of climate variability and extreme weather events in geographies across the continent. 

This piece of research is not meant to be exhaustive or exclusionary towards considering a broader set of crops. This process and the findings are a stepping-stone to provide an evidence-based assessment on behalf of a global agenda. 

This report was produced alongside the VACS: Research in Action Report, (also known as the Summary Report) which outlines the guiding concepts of the VACS approach, overviews research conducted to date to expand the evidence base, recommends areas of focus for the movement going forward, and ways to engage in VACS. The Summary Report can be found here

Previous blog posts on VACS:

Tuesday, March 12, 2024

Potassium in our soil is running low, threatening global food security

Potassium in our soil is running low, threatening global food security 

While nitrogen and phosphorus sustainability issues are widely known, potassium remains in the shadows. Yet around 20% of agricultural soils worldwide grapple with potassium deficiency, especially in east Asia, south-east Asia, Latin America and sub-Saharan Africa.

Globally, more potassium is being extracted in harvests – small quantities of potassium are essential for every crop we grow – than are being added to fields in fertilisers. This unsustainable phenomenon is known as soil-nutrient mining.

Potassium is generally extracted from potash, a crystal-like mineral found in layers of underground rocks. The world’s reserves are concentrated in a handful of countries which means most other countries rely on imports, making their food systems vulnerable to supply disruptions.

Canada, Belarus and Russia collectively possess around 70% of the world’s potash reserves. Together with China, those four countries produce 80% of the global output and dominate a US$15 billion (£12 billion) international market for potassium fertiliser.

Potash prices are prone to volatility and there have been two big spikes since 2000. The first was in 2009, when prices more than tripled. Despite widespread concern about fertiliser-driven food price instability, little action was taken to shield against future shocks.

Potash mining also has a considerable environmental impact. For each tonne of potassium that is extracted, around three tonnes of mine waste is generated – mostly salt. This is generally left piled up in “salt mountains”. Without proper management that salt can be washed by rains into surrounding rivers and groundwaters where it can significantly damage ecosystems.


Six things we must do


To address soil potassium deficiencies and guard against yield fluctuations, price volatility and environmental impacts, we propose six targeted actions:

  1. Review current potassium stocks and flows. We still don’t have a global assessment of potassium soil stocks which would identify at-risk countries and regions.
  2. Get better at predicting price fluctuations. With volatile potassium prices causing food price spikes, we’ll need to develop our monitoring and forecasting capabilities. An international scheme for reporting potassium resources would give us better data.
  3. Help for farmers. “Sufficient” potassium levels should be defined for each area, based on local assessments considering things like how much potassium was already in the soil and what crops are grown there. There could then be targeted fertiliser recommendations for local farmers.
  4. Evaluate the environmental effects. We need to synthesise all available evidence on environmental damage from potash mining, and a potential increase in potassium fertilisers. We especially need to know what it means for rivers and lakes. Potash alternatives such as polyhalite (a potassium mineral with a lower chloride content) should be considered.
  5. Develop a circular potassium economy. Potassium can be recycled and reused. Creating a circular potassium economy will mean capturing more potassium from human and animal sewage and adding it back on crops to grow more food, so we can eat it again, and so on. Promote diets with lower potassium footprints to reduce reliance on mined potassium sources.
  6. More cooperation between governments. Similar to actions on phosphorus and nitrogen, we need an intergovernmental mechanism to consolidate knowledge on potassium, set globally agreed targets and quantify economic benefits.

African Centre of Excellence for Sustainable Cooling and Cold-Chain

6 March 2024African Centre of Excellence for Sustainable Cooling and Cold-Chain Opens in Kigali

ASEC will deploy state-of-the art technology and capacity building to enable Africa to develop sustainable food value chains and vaccines storage.

By leveraging cutting-edge technologies and innovative solutions, ACES- (as a centre of reference) will in its first phase, empower farmers, healthcare workers, experts and stakeholders across various sectors to mitigate losses, enhance resilience, and promote sustainable development.

ACES initiative has been made possible through the collaborative efforts of various stakeholders, including both Governments of Rwanda and the UK, the United Nations Environment Programme, a consortium of leading UK and international universities, the University of Rwanda, and Rwanda Polytechnic as well as the partnership with the world-leading industries.

The ACES facility, which has training facilities and a demonstration hall will facilitate collaboration between African governments, industry, academia and development institutions to translate knowledge into sustainable actions in order to address global challenges and build a more resilient and equitable world.

In Rwanda, 73% of the total workforce are employed in agriculture and according to the World Bank, food losses represents 12% annual GDP. World Bank figures show that 62% cannot afford cooling technology due to high initial investments, 96% of farmers living in the vicinity of the cold rooms don’t use them and only 5% of firms in the food and agriculture sector have refrigerated trucks. While 9% have a cold room to store fresh produce, small and marginal farmers, where the majority of post-harvest food losses occur, functional cold chains are completely absent (less than 1% of cold-chain capacity).

ACES is complemented with Specialized Outreach and Knowledge Establishments (SPOKEs) where we will demonstrate solutions and cascade knowledge to local markets in order to accelerate deployment of sustainable smart cold-chain in Community Cooling Hubs (CCH), Carole Gwiza, the Executive Director of ACES

The first of these is being developed in Kenya and  more SPOKEs will be developed (even in Rwanda) to reach the rural citizens who need applicable and affordable cold-chain tech. In order to reach and educate farmers, during the initial phase of the ACES, private sector players like, Carrier Transicold signed a memorandum of understanding with ACES to deliver three cold-chain units which will be used for this purpose.

Agricultural education partnership Africa - Asia

8 March 2024. Michigan State University (MSU) Extension has partnered with India’s National Institute of Agricultural Extension Management (MANAGE) to launch the Centre for Agricultural Development in the African and Asian Regions

The Centre will serve as a platform for capacity-building in developing countries, including promoting good agricultural practices to empower farmers and encourage agricultural entrepreneurship and innovations.

Karim Maredia,
director of international programs for the MSU College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, said that Centre will be a game-changer for farmers and agribusinesses in these regions.

MSU Extension is the outreach arm of Michigan State University. With more than 600 professionals throughout the state, the organization helps address critical issues, needs and opportunities by delivering the vast knowledge resources of MSU directly to individuals, communities and businesses.

Related: 28 -29 February 2024. 11th Sankalp Africa Summit 


The Sankalp Africa Summit at the Kenya School of Monetary Studies in Nairobi is an event that catalyzes collaborations across the entrepreneurial ecosystem in order to solve global challenges sustainably.  

Entrepreneurs are reshaping Africa’s economic opportunities to improve the lives of millions. 

https://events.sankalpforum.com/event/b0a4d311-c78f-4b35-9aa5-2b91d96eac97/websitePage:8643b946-3cfa-498a-ac28-591f70f7d6fd?session=4de3a820-519c-4328-81fe-6c2c29934c51

https://youtu.be/YdJhqPrLkhs?si=RfAQXJpX1C96uVTX

Exploring Living Income: Understanding Living Income, Trends and Tools


12 March 2024
Exploring Living Income: Understanding Living Income, Trends and Tools | Hosted by LICoP

To inaugurate the 2024 webinar series, this webinar aimed at gaining a deeper understanding of how the community operates and how various stakeholders such as companies, governments, sector groups, and NGOs are addressing the challenge of achieving a Living Income.

In 2024, the Living Income Community of Practice will hosts the following events:
  • April (Webinar) Gender-focused Living Income Interventions
  • May (Webinar) Responsible Purchasing Practices
  • June (Virtual workshop) Ingreso Digno en Latinoamérica: Estrategias, impacto y desarrollo
  • July (Webinar) Living Income benchmarks and the strategic way forward
  • Q4 (In-person workshop) LICoP in person workshop

Related:


The Living Income movement has been steadily gaining momentum, leading to the development of a diverse range of initiatives and programmes. This growing interest is driven by the desire to enhance our understanding of how to increase farmers’ incomes and refine both the design and implementation of effective interventions. This event, led by Evidensia in partnership with the Living Income Community of Practice (LICOP) and hosted by the UNDP Food And Agricultural Commodity Systems, focused on the latest findings to explore what is effectively increasing incomes.