About the Conference

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AKADEMIYA2063, in partnership with AUC, is convening the 2022 ReSAKSS Annual Conference to promote review and dialogue on the contribution of the agri-food processing sector to productive, sustainable food systems that support livelihoods and food security. The conference will take place as a hybrid physical-virtual event on 25–27 October 2022 under the theme of “Agrifood processing strategies for successful food systems transformation in Africa.”

About

Africa’s food systems are changing rapidly, with value chains becoming more complex and high-value food products accounting for larger shares of consumers’ diets. The midstream segments of agricultural value chains are increasingly important in response to demand from urban markets for more significant volumes of food and value-added. Africa’s agrifood processing sector is central to these changes. The growth and development of the sector will help determine whether the burgeoning demand of urban food markets will be met through local production or increases in Africa’s already high levels of imports from outside the continent. The processing sector is increasingly the conduit through which smallholder farmers reach consumers, and as such, plays an important role in increasing farmer income opportunities and creating employment opportunities along the value chain. To enhance the sector’s contribution to employment and poverty reduction, policymakers should help agrifood processing firms overcome the multiple constraints facing them through better access to finance, skills development, high-quality infrastructure, and technologies.

The 2022 ReSAKSS Annual Conference will bring together state and non-state actors to deliberate on the key findings and policy recommendations of the ReSAKSS 2022 ATOR. The report 1) discusses the role of agrifood processing in food systems transformation, 2) reviews the patterns, structure, and performance of key agrifood processing subsectors, and 3) examines required policies, public services, and investments for robust and efficient agri-food processing sectors. The report also reviews progress in CAADP implementation and examines the status of key CAADP Results Framework and Biennial Review indicators.

Objectives

The objectives of the conference are to allow participants to:

  1. Discuss the research evidence and recommendations presented in the 2022 ATOR on the contribution of Africa’s agrifood processing sectors to employment, poverty reduction, and food systems transformation;
  2. Examine dynamics and trends in key processing subsectors and value chains;
  3. Identify required actions to allow agrifood processing firms to overcome constraints to growth and productivity;
  4. Assess progress in implementing national agriculture investment plans (NAIPs) and promoting mutual accountability through the CAADP Biennial Review (BR) process; and
  5. Evaluate the status of CAADP implementation and progress toward achieving key goals and targets.

Expected outcomes

Expected outcomes of the conference are:

1. Shared understanding of:

a.Required investments and policies to strengthen the contribution of agrifood processing sectors to sustainable food systems transformation;

b.Potential solutions to constraints to growth and productivity of agrifood processing firms;

c.Progress and required next steps in advancing the CAADP BR and NAIP implementation processes;

d.Actions needed to accelerate the implementation of CAADP and ensure its goals and objectives are achieved.

2. Shared lessons and experiences on:

a.Dynamics of agrifood processing sectors across the continent and policy actions to advance the development of the sector and enhance its contribution to livelihoods and food systems transformation;

b.Promoting mutual accountability and ensuring that the BR process triggers required actions and policy change to advance NAIP implementation and the achievement of Malabo Declaration goals and targets.

STRUCTURE

Day 1, Tuesday, October 25: The day will begin with side events, followed by the official opening of the conference. The first sessions of the conference will feature an overview presentation of the 2022 ATOR, a keynote presentation on trends and outlook for Africa’s agrifood processing sector, presentations of ATOR chapters, and panel and plenary discussions on the conference theme.

Day 2, Wednesday, October 26: Presentations and panel and plenary discussions on the chapters of the 2022 ATOR and the conference theme will continue on Day 2.

Day 3, Thursday, October 27: Day 3 will conclude the conference with presentations and panel and plenary discussions on progress in achieving CAADP goals and progress and next steps in the CAADP Biennial Review process and NAIP implementation.

Download the Concept Note

AKADEMIYA2063 is an international Africa-based non-profit research organization with headquarters in Kigali, Rwanda, and a regional office in Dakar, Senegal. Inspired by the ambitions of the African Union’s Agenda 2063 and grounded in the recognition of the central importance of strong knowledge and evidence-based systems, the vision of AKADEMIYA2063 is an Africa with the expertise we need for the Africa we want. This expertise must be responsive to the continent’s needs for data and analysis to ensure high-quality policy design and execution. Inclusive, evidence-informed policymaking is key to meeting the continent’s development aspirations, creating wealth, and changing livelihoods for the better.

AKADEMIYA2063’s overall mission is to create, across Africa and led from its headquarters in Rwanda, state-of-the-art technical capacities to support the efforts by the Member States of the African Union to achieve the key goals of Agenda 2063 of transforming national economies to boost economic growth and prosperity.

Following from its vision and mission, the main goal of AKADEMIYA2063 is to help meet Africa’s needs at the continental, regional and national levels in terms of data, analytics, and mutual learning for the effective implementation of Agenda 2063 and the realization of its outcomes by a critical mass of countries. AKADEMIYA2063 strives to meet its goals through programs organized under five strategic areas—policy innovation, knowledge systems, capacity creation and deployment, operational support, and data management, digital products, and technology—as well as innovative partnerships and outreach activities. For more information, please visit www.akademiya2063.org.

Established in 2006 under the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP), the Regional Strategic Analysis and Knowledge Support System (ReSAKSS) supports efforts to promote evidence and outcome-based policy planning and implementation. In particular, ReSAKSS provides data and related analytical and knowledge products to facilitate CAADP benchmarking, review, and mutual accountability processes.

AKADEMIYA2063 leads the work of ReSAKSS in partnership with the African Union Commission (AUC), the African Union Development Agency (AUDA-NEPAD), and leading Regional Economic Communities (RECs). The mission of AKADEMIYA2063 is to provide data, policy analysis, and capacity-strengthening support to enable African Union (AU) Member States to achieve economic transformation and shared prosperity in support of the AU’s Agenda 2063. As the main platform for monitoring CAADP implementation, ReSAKSS tracks the progress of core CAADP indicators through an interactive website and a flagship Annual Trends and Outlook Report (ATOR), the official CAADP monitoring and evaluation (M&E) report. In addition to tracking progress on CAADP core indicators, the ATOR presents analysis on a feature topic of strategic importance to the CAADP agenda each year. For more information, please visit www.resakss.org.

The African Union Commission (AUC)’s Department of Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy, and Sustainable Environment (ARBE) leads the efforts to promote sustainable environmental management and agricultural development by boosting member states’ rural economy development and agricultural transformation by supporting the adoption of measures, strategies, policies, and programmes on agriculture. Its mandate includes promoting the implementation of Agenda 2063 Continental Frameworks such as the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP). For more information about AUC-DARBE, please visit: https://au.int/en/arbe.