Month: September 2022

By Shanni Srivastava, Regional Head of East Africa, Middle East & IOI at UPL

A glance at recent news coverage – from the extremes of flooding in Pakistan to droughts across North America – leaves little question that climate change is not only here, but that its effects are worsening. Until we make profound and lasting changes to how we treat our planet, until we adapt our existing practices, and until we utilise new and existing utilise tools at our disposal to support this mission, it is difficult to see a reversal of this trend.

In the energy sector, global leaders around the world are making bold and important commitments to help decarbonise the world through shifting from fossil fuels to clean, green, renewable sources. But whilst these measures can help slow and lessen overall greenhouse gas emissions, they cannot reduce those emissions which we’ve already put into the atmosphere. And yet across the world, one overlooked and underutilised sector is evidencing that it can in fact do this: agriculture.

Whilst agriculture is often characterised by its environmental challenges – including greenhouse gas contributions, land and water use – at UPL we committed to showcasing to the world the climate-positive opportunities inherent in farming activity all over the world. Put simply, agriculture is the only natural process that offers a practical way for us to put carbon back into the soil. Techniques such as no-till farming, cover crops, carbon-fixing bacteria, crop rotations, bio-fertilizers and smart irrigation practices can help increase organic carbon stocks in soil, not only locking away that carbon indefinitely, but also making the soil more fertile, healthier which in turn helps crops and those who grow them thrive.

But we cannot expect farmers to invest the time and resources into these performing these practices, nor take on the burden of climate change alone. Africa’s farmers confront risk and uncertainty every day. From flattening yields, to interchangeable commodity prices, and increasingly erratic trade relationships. Working off of tight financial margins, on plots frequently smaller the two hectares, and under harsh and often unpredictable climatic conditions, Africa’s growers must undertake practices that will help boost their productivity and benefit their livelihoods. And they must be supported to implement these practices.

Across other industries, we see grants and subsidies being offered for those who choose environmentally sustainable practices or choices: in short, good practices bring rewards. And this must be mimicked in the agricultural sector. We must support, equip, and empower the farmers who we have relied upon for decades to feed our population, and come to increasingly depend upon as guardians of our planets prosperous future. We cannot expect those farmers, particularly those who face other competing priorities and pressures, to farm sustainably without the right rewards.

Guided by this belief, alongside our partners at the FIFA Foundation, we launched the Gigaton Carbon Goal. We wanted to go beyond our commitment to going Net Zero by 2040, aspiring not just to reduce our own emissions, but work with likeminded farming communities to help them capture carbon emissions already in our atmosphere. We thought what better way to do this, than set out an ambitious goal – and an industry first – to help farmers sequester 1 gigaton, or 1 billion metric tonnes, of carbon dioxide between now and 2040, and reward them for adopting sustainable agricultural practices?

As part of this initiative, we will work with reliable and recognised carbon certification bodies that enable agro-ecosystems to create and validate emission and carbon capture protocols that will generate carbon credits that will directly benefit farmers. The Gigaton Carbon Goal pilot phase is already underway and has reached farmers across South Africa, Brazil, Argentina, India, USA and some European countries with the tools they need to perform sustainable agricultural practices.

Africa’s potential to help tackle the climate crisis through carbon farming in immense – but remains largely untapped. According to a report commissioned by the IUCN and the UNFCCC High Level Champions and steered by a working group of African partners ahead of COP26 in Glasgow, in Africa practices such as soil management and agroforestry can help the continent further social, environmental and economic goals through boosting crop yields, enhancing human nutrition and livelihoods, whilst supporting soil and ecosystem health. Indeed, through a 50% adoption of regenerative agriculture across Africa, the report forecasts that farmers could see: an income increase of up to US$150 per year; 30% reduction in soil erosion; up to 60% increase in water infiltration rates; and 24% increase in nitrogen content; and 20% increase in carbon content.

At UPL we are unapologetically optimistic about the possibilities for climate-positive, and undeniably confident that, with access to the right solutions, technologies, and incentive schemes, farmers of all sizes can be the champions of our Net Zero future. In South Africa, our carbon journey is beginning and we have had introductory meetings with our key distributors, looked at downstream food and beverage companies in South Africa to partner with as our programme develops, and we are planning to launch our pilot project in the upcoming summer season. And in Kenya, the maize ProNutiva program, our unique and bespoke approach which combines traditional crop protection products and biosolutions, is helping deliver the best outcomes in terms of crop health, food safety and food security. The core objective of this program is supporting farmers who face issues around soil infertility, acidity, and building soil health which can be turned into a huge carbon sink. The trials this year has demonstrated amazing results despite the erratic delayed rain that has been experienced in Kenya for the third season this year. The program is designed to create long-term sustainability by incentivising and rewarding farmers through the provision of carbon credits. The platform is ready, tested & ready to be rolled in October 2022.

With an over 35-year history working with farmers across Africa, an even longer history of developing agricultural solution sets designed with the smallest farmer in mind, combined with our unrivalled presence across the continent, we are uniquely placed to help farmers embrace this new climate-positive farming future. We are committed to mobilising our resources and experience to identify and invest in tools, techniques and technologies that can help farmers Reimagine Sustainability, giving them empowering them to become the new heroes of our net zero future.

We are so pleased to see the emphasis AGRF has placed on the importance of rewarding farmers through this year’s conference theme ‘Grow, Nourish, Reward – Bold Actions for Resilient Food Systems.’ We look forward to seeing everyone at this year’s Summit and invite others to join our journey to support agricultural practices that secure food supply, strengthen livelihoods and sequesters carbon. We must urgently join forces to scale these proven practices, guided by the needs and interests of farmers, and ensure that they are directly and rightly rewarded.

On Day 1, in the first special event of the in-person AGRF 2022 Summit it is the farmers themselves that are at the heart of the conversation. Moreover, they are at the heart of Africa’s economic growth and agricultural transformation and with the dizzying statistic that around 70% of the population are employed in agriculture, this session was all about ensuring their voices are heard. A task that was ably moderated by Eugene Anangwe from CNBC who was quick to celebrate the fact that we were able to attend the summit in-person.

Today’s forum started with a welcome and some framing remarks by Mr Kolyang Palabele, President of the Pan-African Farmers Organization (PAFO) who spoke about the need to listen, to set objectives and to have clear strategies that will transform the whole agricultural firmament and allow for a quiet revolution of how this sector is managed going forward.

With the period of rapid change that has plagued the global economy – from Covid-19 to natural disasters linked to climate change, in addition to conflicts, the most vulnerable communities in Africa have been particularly badly hit. Something that keynote speaker H.E. Dr. Philip Mpango, Vice President, Tanzania was quick to point out whilst paying tribute to the farmers who had overcome so many challenges in the last few years. He went on to speak about the measures taken within Tanzania that had positively impacted their agriculture sector. With so much of the continent reliant on agriculture for both food and their income it is the farming communities that are disproportionately impacted by these running crises. For the continent to thrive it is the smallholder farmers, pastoralists and fishers who need greater support so that they may act as the agents of change necessary to restore and improve livelihoods. He also raised the issue that the farming organizations were to ensure they were truly the voices of their members and not just nominally. To that end he exhorted his colleagues across the continent to encourage governments to ensure further funding to motivate women and the youth to get involved, to hear what they have to say on agriculture and develop the human resources that are being underused in the current systems.

Handing over to the other keynote speaker, the Chair of AGRF Partners Group and Former Prime Minister of Ethiopia, H.E. Hailemariam Dessalegn went on to discuss the need to diversify and focus on higher value crops and farming that will lead to greater returns and accelerate growth. Finishing, he spoke about the absolute necessity to be bold and innovative.  

A lively panel discussion followed with fascinating contributions covering a broad range of talking points including inclusivity, security, inequality and investment. It began with an acknowledgement of the diversity of gender and age represented by the panel and how that diversity needed to be reflected in the sector too, this quickly became a passionate plea for change, to encourage innovation and entrepreneurship, to engage with the young and sell the industry to them, ‘There’s money to be made playing with mud.’

Ms. Elizabeth Nsimadala, President, Eastern Africa Farmers Federation (EAFF) talked about the plight of smallholder farmers and frustration about how their lobbying work would stall due to politicians not acting as swiftly as they might, but moreover the wider challenges they have faced and continue to, ‘Smallholders are at the edge of social strife… desert locusts, Covid-19 and now the Ukraine crisis… and the elephants in the room, the markets.’  

‘If we want to move smallholders from subsistence farming we need to cultivate business skills and offer technological support’ these stages are absolutely necessary to ensure smallholders and women specifically can thrive and be marketable in this industry.

There was a continuous echo of the need to have and commission proper research to battle inequality and overcome the challenges, technological, unfair distribution within the supply chain and other issues without which there will continue to be a disconnect between farmers and politicians.

As the foremost forum for African agriculture, AGRF brings together the many stakeholders within agriculture, a view that was endorsed during the conversation, a unified approach that listened to its members, working collaboratively and creatively was the only way to ensure success. With both PAFO and AGRA leading the way we can ensure we are harvesting the views of the farmers, and farming organizations and even those from outside of the industry who may have something to offer, to proactively contribute their lived experiences, their informal, anecdotal research and go on to help shape political discourse to ensure a brighter future not just for those working in agriculture but for the continent of Africa itself.

A fascinating forum was brought to a close with the key takeaways being that governments have a responsibility to support the industry with investment and research and that farmers have a responsibility to make sure that they are at the heart of driving policy and making the sector attractive to the next generation.

The 2022 AGRF Summit, in Kigali Rwanda, was officially opened on Tuesday September 6, during a session attended by leaders in Africa’s agriculture and food systems.  

The AGRF is the world’s premier forum for African agriculture, bringing together stakeholders in the agricultural landscape to take practical actions and share lessons that will move African agriculture forward.

This year’s edition marks a return to in-person attendance following a two-year break brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Under the theme Grow. Nourish. Reward – Bold Actions for Resilient Food Systems, participants, including heads of state, ministers of agriculture, leaders of development organizations, the scientific community, and private sector investors, will for four days engage in conversation and deals intended at driving an inclusive and sustainable agricultural transformation in Africa.

Rwanda’s Prime Minister, the Right Honorable Dr. Édouard Ngirente, officially opened the summit with an appeal for collaboration between Africa’s different stakeholders in fast-tracking Africa’s food system transformation.

Citing the successful launch of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), Hon. Ngirente, urged leaders to view food system transformation as a key foundation of the continent’s economic growth.

“We have seen bold actions at the continental level, with our heads of state and government coming together to form the AfCFTA … we now need to leverage such mechanisms to ensure that we are better able to meet our food security needs,” he said.

“African countries need to fully commit to driving a comprehensive agriculture transformation as a key foundation of our economic growth,” he added.

His sentiments were echoed by H.E. Hailemariam Dessalegn, the former Prime Minister of Ethiopia and current board chair of the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA), who reiterated that Africa’s future well being is dependent on today’s actions.

“A food systems transformation is key to economic transformation … we need this now… anything short of this implies that Africa is likely to be the only hungry continent by 2030,” he said, while reiterating that quicker action is required to achieve the key sustainable development goals of ending hunger and poverty by 2030.

Rwanda’s agriculture minister Hon. Gerardine Mukeshimana added: “We need to come up with actionable plans to get us out of the present crises, but also to develop our resilience for future survival”

As part of the activities to drive the requisite food transformation, African countries were urged to invest in innovation technology, with Gambia’s agriculture Minister Hon. Dr. Demba Sally singling out investments in post-harvest handling as urgent.

“Most parts of West Africa have about 30% of their food going to waste…we must seriously invest in processing and marketing,” he said.

More areas of investment, noted AGRA President Dr. Agnes Kalibata, are contained in the food system pathways that countries committed to at the 2021 UN Food Systems Summit in New York.

The launch event culminated with the launch of the 2022 African Agriculture Status Report (AASR), whose theme is Accelerating African Food Systems Transformation.