From the 5th to the 6th August 2019, Rwanda is hosting the Africa Food Security Leadership Dialogue, a continental meeting that aims at initiating a high-level partnership platform for strengthening coordination to achieve food and nutrition security in Africa.
The two-day event, which is taking place at Kigali Convention Center, is facilitating engagement between key stakeholders to galvanize unified action around adaptation of Africa’s agriculture and food systems to climate change.
It brought together Ministers of Agriculture and Finance, heads of international institutions and Regional Economic Commissions, Nobel laureates, and eminent scientists to catalyze actions and financing to help address Africa’s worsening food security crisis under climate change.
This high level meeting has been organized in partnership with the African Union Commission (AUC), African Development Bank (AfDB), Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), and World Bank (WB).

Speaking at the opening of this event, Minister of Agriculture and Animal Resources, Dr Gerardine Mukeshimana, noted that adapting Africa food systems to climate change requires technologies that boost productivity in sustainable landscapes, through Climate Smart Agriculture.

The minister added that there is need also to fix food processing and retail sector as well as work on an Africa-wide regional agenda to strengthen agricultural education, science, and skills with a focus on gender and on youth.

“It’s clear that business as usual won’t work to deal with forces that outstrip and outpace the ability of farmers and food systems to adapt. We need to speak plainly and offer immediate responses to tackle food insecurity,” Minister Mukeshimana said.
The Africa Food Security Leadership Dialogue is fully in line with the Africa Union Agenda 2063 and is intended to support the implementation of the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Program (CAADP) and leverage existing platforms.
At the end of this meeting, the core partners are expected to sign a communiqué that will formalize a commitment to better coordinate and facilitate joint actions.