Taking Action for the Worlds Poor and Hungry People

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Taking Action for the Worlds Poor and Hungry
People

• The promise and potential of African agriculture
  to fight hunger and poverty

Prof. Dr Ir Rudy Rabbinge Chair Science Council
CGIAR G.5. Plenary Keynote Addresses October 19th
2007, Beijing
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Food availability per caput
Source FAOstat
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Achievements in Agriculture

• Food production per person increased by 30 over
  past 5 decades, despite doubling of population
• Discontinuous productivity rise
• Major role for technology
• Fertilizers
• Variety improvement (rice, wheat, maize)
• Mechanization
• Irrigation
• Biocides
• Proper institutions in place

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SS Africa lags behind
Population 600 M Birth rate 2.7 Malnourished 1
80 M

• Increase labor productivity (1960-2000)
• World 160
• Sub Saharan Africa 121
• Europe (15) 634

GDP 474 Growth 1988-2000 0.6
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Diagnosis

• Absence of dominating food crops
• Weathered soils
• Erratic rainfall
• Endemic plant and animal diseases
• Multitude of farming systems

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Diagnosis (cont.)

• Land / Labor productivity low
• Dominant role for women limited access to
  resources
• Lack of investment in agricultural research
• Lack of knowledge infrastructure
• Brain drain

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Diagnosis (cont.)

• Lack of functioning academic institutions
• Not functioning local and regional markets
• Land entitlement inappropriate
• No stimulating political and economic
  environment
• Inadequate capacity to impact global policy
  formulation
• Lack of good governance

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Hunger Hotspots Farming Systems
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Strategic recommendations four domains

• Technology options that can make a difference
  (11)
• Pursue a strategy of integrated sustainable
  intensification
• Reduce land degradation and replenish soil
  fertility

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Recognizing the potential of rain-fed agriculture
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Mechanization

• Labor productivity increase from 1960-2000 ()
• World 160
• SubSaharan Africa 121
• EastSouteast 203
• South Asia 165
• Latin Amer. Car. 246
• North America 360
• Europe (15) 634

Land productivity
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Strategic recommendations four domains

• Technology options that can make a difference
  (11)
• Pursue a strategy of integrated sustainable
  intensification
• Reduce land degradation and replenish soil
  fertility
• Building impact-oriented research, knowledge and
  development institutions (5)
• Creating and retaining a new generation of
  agricultural scientists (5)
• Markets and policies to make the poor prosperous
  and food secure (5)

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Conclusion

• Ample opportunities for ST to increase food
  security, to alleviate hunger and to strengthen
  development
• The African situation requires specific instead
  of generic ST solutions
• Not one green revolution, but multitude of
  rainbow evolutions
• Full power ST unlocked only when scientific
  development is accompanied by adequate enabling
  conditions (including the international
  community)

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Dissemination

• African organizations (Nepad, AU, FARA, SROs,
  NARIs)
• Multilateral organizations (UN, FAO, UNEP)
• Scientific organizations (IAC, national
  academies, ARIs)
• Donor organizations (DGIS, DFID)
• Creation of AGRA (Alliance for Green Revolution
  in Africa)

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Coordination with other panels

• Millennium Development Goals
• MDG has eclipsed the IAC in most recommendation
  areas
• The global report of the Science Council of the
  CGIAR
• Proposed programs of the two taskforces in line
  with the recommendations of the IAC report
• Sub-Saharan Africa Challenge Program
• Pilot Learning Sites
• The World Bank coordinated IAASTD
• The IAC-report was presented and well received
• Objectives correspond directly to IAC-report
• The World Development Report
• Strengthens the role of research and technology

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Technology options that can make a difference

• Challenge Program

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Technology options that can make a difference

• Challenge Program
• Program for Dissemination of New Agricultural
  Technologies in Africa (DONATA)
• SROs competitive grants
• Multi-country Agricultural Productivity Program
  (MAPP)
• Comprehensive Africa Agricultural Development
  Program (CAADP)

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Building impact-oriented research, knowledge and
development institutions

• African Centers of Agricultural Research
  Excellence (ACAREs) Biosciences East and Central
  Africa (BECA)
• Network of African Science Academies (NASAC)

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Creating and retaining a new generation of
agricultural scientists

• Building African Scientific and Institutional
  Capacity Building (BASIC)
• Regional Universities Forum for Capacity Building
  in Agriculture (RUFORUM)
• Global Open University
• Economics of Agriculture and Natural Resources
• Agro-ecology

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Markets and policies to make the poor income and
food secure

• Political willConstant emphasis in dissemination
• NEPAD
• FAO
• CGIAR
• Appropriate instruments
• Commitment of the world community
• Adequate financial support

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Thank you