African governments and private sector players are working on investments in agriculture as a key driver of economic growth.

At the recent African Green Revolution Forum in Nairobi, presidents Uhuru Kenyatta of Kenya and Paul Kagame of Rwanda together with African Union commissioner Rhode Peace Tumusiime took to the stage to discuss the potential of agriculture in the present and the future. The panel was moderated by KCB Group CEO Joshua Oigara.

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Mr Oigara: This is a defining moment for Africa. We gather here to rewrite the continent’s agricultural story as we seek investments to end hunger, improve nutrition and drive growth. President Kagame, your country has made tremendous strides in agriculture. What is your vision for Rwanda and the continent?

In Rwanda, 70 per cent of the population is involved in agriculture and contributes 32 per cent of our GDP. Knowing that there is great potential in agriculture we have done a number of things: Crop intensification, better land management, utilisation of technologies, and provision of improved seeds and other inputs. Women and youth who have been the backbone of agriculture are transforming the sector.

Madam Tumusiime, what is the vision for agricultural transformation at the African Union?

We have several decisions, declarations, and implementation strategies. We are creating platforms, setting standards and implementing what the heads of state and governments ask us to do. We want action on the ground and we shall drive this process. How can we drive the process of Malabo [to reach the agriculture goals to be attained by 2025]?

We have put together a robust work plan, together with the member states and at the country level, which the countries are ready to implement. We have devolved tools of accountability, where the heads of state will come together every two years to say where they are in implementing Malabo. We aim to achieve the transformation we want in agriculture on the continent.

President Kenyatta, you have focused on engaging the youth. How do you look at this as a driver for transformation?

Our demographics show that we have a youthful population. And we are still talking about the need for the continent to be food secure. We’re talking about a Green Revolution. We have the workforce, and we need to engage them in agriculture to sort out our food security.

The problem is, how do we facilitate these young people to be gainfully engaged in agriculture? How do we assist them with new technology, innovations, not just for subsistence but as a viable business? I think every African has either been educated or brought up on the proceeds of agriculture.

Every person in this group can call themselves a farmer. But we have not given it the focus that we need to. Even as we say there is a role for governments to create an enabling environment by creating the necessary policy framework to encourage agriculture, we have to ask how we partner with others, especially the private sector, because governments do not have the resources to do it by themselves. We can work with development partners and others to see how we can de-risk agriculture by boosting insurance coverage.

Innovation without finance isn’t going to cut it. We need greater partnerships with all stakeholders, including KCB.

What are your thoughts, President Kagame?

There is a long value chain in agriculture, right from the farmers to the consumer. We need to find out how the young people fit into this value chain. Everybody should make a profit. Agriculture is an industry where serious business is taking place, so that we improve everything from the farmer, to the inputs, to improved methods of farming, storage and harvest; the whole process up to the market.

This value chain has huge benefits. It is a question of understanding its breadth and width and involving everyone in the process. We should stop thinking of agriculture as a subsistence traditional way where people dig holes and till the land. The private sector has to see agriculture as a sector with huge potential. We need to realise that potential.

Rwanda is one of the few countries that have embraced a cross-sector coordination and delivery mechanism to ensure delivery of top priorities in agriculture and nutrition. What are your reasons for taking this approach?

We experimented and got good results. We work with the private sector and public sector first, then we go to the citizens and their leaders. We have created a framework with a contract. And we hold ourselves and each other accountable.

Once you have identified resources, no matter where they come from, we map them out and prioritise them. The people to implement are known, and the process is clear.

If all these resources are available and the people given these responsibilities are known, we then have a contract with the players. Then we go back to the citizens and ask what they require. So we all share the benefit.

We have created an evaluation system to monitor what is happening. At the end of an agreed period, we sit at one place and have a national dialogue which brings all sectors together. The results are read out and the districts are ranked. This mechanism has incentivised people to not want to be at the bottom. We have created extension services that operate at all levels, enabling people to hold each other accountable. This is what has helped on delivery.

Madam Commissioner, what is the role of the AU in all this?

Implementation is at the country level, and leadership is key. The leaders have spoken. So the role of the AU is to ensure that those decisions and commitments are implemented. We have agreed to work together with partners on the continent and global communities to empower countries to understand these decisions because the AU only makes decisions at the continental level.

You cannot deliver unless you have a structured approach. At the country level, this has to happen with the leadership at the centre. The report on agriculture presented showed that those countries that are transforming the sector have had proper plans that have been implemented.

President Kenyatta, how will technology help catalyse investments and get the change we are looking for?

Technology is useful in ensuring access to the market. Today mobile technology has made it easier for a farmer to get information like the price of goods. This information empowers farmers to have greater control over their produce without being exploited by middlemen. Technology can be used to enhance the ways we do agriculture through irrigation, maximising utility of land, and reducing input costs.

President Kagame, Commissioner Tumusiime please share your thoughts.

President Kagame: Technology only becomes important when you apply it to something to find a solution. East Africa is built on platforms that rely on technology. Technology has elevated quality, created awareness and helped reduce waste.

Commissioner Tumusiime: Women make up the majority of the players in the agriculture sector; how do we get them to rise to higher levels? They need to adopt new technologies for value addition and mechanisation. The AU champions education for girls and the equal hiring of women. Policy frameworks should be changed to create equal opportunities for both men and women.

President Kenyatta, you are the Chair of the African Peer Review Mechanism, responsible for translating commitments into action. Its focus has been on governance, but a similar focus is needed on areas such as agriculture. How are you going to translate the principles of the Peer Review Mechanism to ensure we achieve the vision you and your fellow heads of state and government laid out in the Malabo Declaration?

I strongly believe in this mechanism made for Africans by Africans, in a manner that we challenge, review and we accept criticism from each other. After a review, we look at the obstacles that African nations face to prevent them from transforming, to find solutions in terms of governance and also in terms of meeting commitments to the AU, Malabo Declaration and others.

This helps us identify the challenges each country is facing and how we can assist those who are struggling. The review keeps everyone on their toes so that by the time we meet next, we will have a mechanism to focus on our governance and ability to achieve our commitments, enabling us to encourage one another to move in the right direction. Transformation of Africa can only happen when we transform agriculture.