The African Union has committed to mobilising $100 million in public and private sector investment to improve agrifood systems on the African continent by 2035.

The commitment is part of the Kampala Declaration, endorsed by Nigeria and other AU member countries.

The National Focal Person for the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP), Onijighogia Emmanuel, disclosed this while unveiling the outcomes of the Kampala Declaration to stakeholders in Abuja at the weekend.

The event was organised by the German International Cooperation (GIZ) and ActionAid.

He mentioned that the Kampala Declaration builds on the Maputo Declaration, which spanned from 2003–2013, and the Malabo Declaration implemented between 2015–2025.
The Guardian reports that under the Maputo Declaration, African Heads of State pledged to allocate 10 per cent of their budgets to agriculture, with the target of achieving 6 per cent GDP growth in agriculture,

fighting hunger, and creating jobs. Under the Malabo Declaration, African leaders renewed their commitment to agriculture with the goal of ending hunger and poverty, boosting trade, and ensuring sustainability by 2025.

He, however, mentioned that the Kampala Declaration, to span from 2026–2035, is targeted at shifting from agriculture to an agrifood system — that is, from farm to table — highlighting six objectives,

including production, trade, investment, food security, inclusivity, and governance.
X-raying how far African governments, and Nigeria especially, have performed in meeting the commitment, the CAADP focal officer regretted that Nigeria still budgets less than 3 per cent for agriculture, as 18 per cent of Nigerians lack food. One in five persons in Africa is faced with hunger, adding that about 172 million Nigerians cannot afford healthy meals.

He highlighted challenges facing food production in the country to include weak extension services, poor farming practices, poor nutrition, low productivity, and poor market links, adding that to tackle these challenges, there is a need to boost extension services, provide affordable inputs, increase the agriculture budget, and prioritise children’s nutrition.

Onijighogia stated that it was on this basis that African Heads of State set key outcomes, including: increase agrifood output by 45 per cent; reduce post-harvest losses by 50 per cent; promote agro-industrialisation and intra-Africa trade; achieve Zero Hunger across AU Member States by 2035; reduce stunting, wasting, and overweight by 25 per cent; and ensure 60 per cent of the population can afford healthy diets.

Other commitments include mobilising $100 billion in public and private investments, allocating 10 per cent of public budgets to agrifood systems, reinvesting 15 per cent of agrifood GDP annually into the sector, cutting extreme poverty by 50 per cent, reducing the yield gap between men and women by 50 per cent, empowering 30 per cent of women, youth and marginalised groups, and ensuring 30 per cent of farmland is sustainably managed.

The GIZ Agriculture Advisor, Precious Jacclenmi, stated that the workshop was organised to create a space to ensure that the perspectives, experiences, and recommendations of actors in the sector shape the future of agricultural transformation and food systems governance in Nigeria.

She mentioned that the success of initiatives like CAADP and the domestication of the Kampala Declaration depends on the meaningful engagement of actors who work at the grassroots to influence policy and ensure inclusiveness.
The Food and Agriculture Systems Specialist at ActionAid Nigeria, Azubike Nwokoye, emphasised the importance of accountability in implementing the Kampala Declaration and urged non-state actors to strengthen research, evidence generation, and policy advocacy to ensure adequate budgetary allocations for agriculture and their effective utilisation.

He said areas requiring urgent focus include access to credit, participation by women and youth, labour-saving technologies, extension services, storage and processing facilities, and measures to reduce post-harvest losses.