Forum For Agricultural Research In Accra

First Dialogue Of Ministers Of Agriculture, Science And Technology In Africa Hosted By Forum For Agricultural Research In Africa (Fara) In Accra, Ghana

Ministers recommend the establishment of an African Union Monitoring System for the implementation of decisions of Ministerial Dialogue

Accra (29th April, 2011): African Ministers of Agriculture and Representatives from Agricultural research organizations from over 15 countries have recommended the establishment of an African Union Monitoring System to allow effective implementation and follow-through of decisions taken at the maiden convening of the first Annual Dialogue of Ministers of Agriculture, Science and Technology hosted by the Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa (FARA) in Accra.

The Ministers also entreated national governments to fulfill their commitment to invest 10% of their budget to Agriculture in fulfillment of the 2003 Maputo Declaration and agree on a reasonable allocation to agricultural research and development.

The Ministers expressed their collective concern about the persistence of high levels of food insecurity and poverty in Africa, despite the continent’s endowment with abundant natural resources to support Agricultural production. They attributed this to the under-investment in revitalizing agricultural productivity.

The Minister for Food and Agriculture, Honorable Kwasi Ahwoi, noted that significant changes need to happen through the application of appropriate research, science, technology and science education to achieve quantum jumps in agricultural productivity in African agriculture.

He challenged FARA to ‘ lead the way in finding the more efficient and cost effective ways of bridging the wide gap between all of the wonderful research findings on shelves at our research institutions and universities and what is happening on farmers’ farms in Africa.” He cited very successful examples of translations of research findings to farmers fields to increase agriculture in Brazil, Malaysia, Argentina and other countries. He said African countries could take advantage of these successes and further improve upon what others have achieved through collaborative partnerships.

Professsor Julius O. Ihonvbere, Nigeria’s Representative to the International Board Forum of Federations stated that the African leaders and governments to a large extent do not consider investments in agriculture a priority. He said “the future of Africa is tied to Agriculture. The solutions to poverty, crime, unemployment and hunger is tied to agriculture. Our leaders and policy makers must come to terms with the fact that no African nation can sustain and expand agriculture and reap the benefits of that sector without consistently increased investment in research and institution building”.

In a communique issued after the two-day event, the Ministers among others recommended that a minimum amount of USD 10,000 per annum be provided by African governments as a special direct contribution to FARA as a springboard to mobilise additional resources and to demonstrate African ownership of the institution.

They also committed to facilitating the process of increasing investments in Africa’s agricultural research and development by initiating dialogue between FARA and the relevant national cabinets to put in place the necessary modalities to follow up the recommendations collectively agreed upon, and to establish an African laissez-passer to facilitate the movement of FARA staff for effective and efficient delivery of its services across the region

The Annual Ministerial Dialogue is a forum of ministers of agriculture, science and technology and other agriculture-related ministries to share ideas and agree on collective actions towards enhancing agricultural productivity in Africa. The dialogue was recommended by the ministers present during the 5th Africa Agricultural Science week and FARA General Assembly in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, in July 2010.

It was collectively agreed that the Ministerial Dialogue should be held annually.

For more information, kindly contact the following:

Eric McGaw: O544-337060 emcgaw@fara-africa.org

FARA is the Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa, an umbrella organization bringing together and forming coalitions of major stakeholders in agricultural research and development in Africa. FARA complements the innovative activities of national, international and sub-regional research institutions to deliver more responsive and effective services to its stakeholders. It plays advocacy and coordination roles for agricultural research for development, while the national agricultural research systems (NARS), advanced research institutions (ARIs) and international agricultural research centres (IARCs) develop improved technologies along the research-to-development continuum in their respective countries and coverage areas. For more information, please visit: www.fara-africa.org