The AUC-DARBE Commissioner, Ambassador Josefa Sacko has called for collaborative efforts to address Africa’s food security and boost agribusiness during the Africa Prosperity Dialogues held at Peduase Lodge in Accra.
This according to her will help Africa in breaking from the chains of dependency and create a resilient and self-sustaining agricultural ecosystem.
In a speech read on her behalf by the Executive Director of FARA, Dr Aggrey Agumya at a high level panel on ‘Unleashing Africa’s Food and Agribusiness Potential’, Amb Sacko rallied various governments and private sector to support AU’s Common African Agro-Parks (CAAPs) initiative which aligns with the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
The initiative developed in collaboration with key partners such as AUDA-NEPAD, AfCFTA, AFREXIMBANK, and FARA, has gained momentum “with two Demonstration Projects set to commence this year— the Zambia-Zimbabwe CAAP for maize and dairy products, and the Cote d’Ivoire-Ghana CAAP for Cocoa transformation. These projects are the stepping stones to the establishment of the five large agro-industrial zones that will reshape the landscape of African agriculture,” she noted.
She added that “CAAPs represents more than just a development initiative; they embody the resilience, determination, and collective will of the African continent to control its destiny. Our request for your full support and blessing is not just for the CAAPs but for a future where Africa leads in agriculture, agro-industrialization, and economic prosperity”.
Assuring of its high success rate, Amb Sacko says stakeholders “can establish a vibrant business platform under the CAAPs, utilizing the instruments of the AfCFTA to secure our place in the global food market.”
Therefore, “CAAPs are not just a roadmap; they are the vehicle for an agro-industrial revolution that Africa urgently needs. Let us pledge our commitment to this vision, supporting the CAAPs as the flagship program of the AU Agenda 2063”.
The CAAPs represents a revolutionary step towards establishing five large common agro-industrial zones with transboundary mega agro-industries and food supply corridors, strategically positioned in each of the five geographical regions of Africa.
The Executive Director of FARA, Dr Aggrey Agumya reiterated the role of FARA as the apex continental organization responsible for coordinating and advocating for agricultural research for development (AR4D) in Africa while serving as the technical arm of the Africa Union Commission on matters concerning agriculture science, technology and innovation.
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo announced Ghana’s commitment to implement a visa-free policy for all Africans traveling to the country in 2024.
The President disclosed that the government has initiated processes to implement the policy within the year.
He stated that “I know that many of you had to acquire a visa to come to this event; we made a special arrangement for this conference. We reduced the visa acquisition fee by 50%, and we were thus able to receive your visa on arrival. The Government of Ghana is committed to ensuring visa-free access for all Africans travelling into our country, and the process has begun to implement the policy this year.”
