Key Recommendations from Side Events

Theme: Innovations to Improve Productivity and Resilience

‘Wale Adekunle

Innovations to Improve Productivity and Resilience

The need for Africa agriculture to come up with technological, institutional and infrastructural innovations that ensure high productivity and yet maintain the integrity of natural resources is a key to the development of the sector

36 side events were held to address this theme in the first two days of this Week.

1. FARA delivered the proof of IAR4D concept to stakeholders and launched the Innovative Fund for Agricultural Transformation.

2. Mainstreaming the IAR4D into ARD structure necessitates increasing awareness , capacity development of the different stakeholders, and policy.

3. Technological innovation needs to give attention to issues of postharvest, agricultural-nutrition nexus; and sustainable water use.

Key outcomes Group 1: Development and use of initiative that generate Innovations that benefit all stakeholders

4. The foresight tool is very vital for sustainability and for the future ARD Africa. There is however need for capacity building

5. There is the need to link short and long-term assistance to revitalise local institutions for resilient livelihood solutions for food insecurity.

6. Countries should build critical mass of Scientists in Biotechnology and biosafety to internalize issues of Biotechnology Stewardship.

7. The Science Agenda discussions needs to broaden the consultations to involve the National Agricultural Research Institutes (NARIS) and the various science based networks, it also needs to develop a funding mechanism.

Key outcomes Group 2: Visioning a prosperous future for Africa Agriculture

7. Wheat is an important commodity in Africa, as such there is a need to support the establishment of an Africa led partnership mechanism for coordinating and managing wheat initiative in Africa.

8. Food security issues in crises areas will require the establishment of a joint consultative platform for Africa, Asia and the Near East to share lessons learned and good practices of recovery from protracted crises.

9. Good attention should be giving to the water-food-energy nexus, using the ecosystems approach to assure sustainability in food production.

10. Mobilize political will and leadership to implement the $4.5 billion 10 point plan of reforms to improve land governance over the next 10 years

Key Outcomes Group 3: Issues and Commodities that Require Targeted Effort for Innovation and Impact

11. More investments needs to be made on agricultural market value chain to facilitate the development of the public-private partnership.

12. There is a need for investment for workable Aquatic Agricultural Systems ( AAS) platform under FARA to bridge the boundary between research, policy and development.

13. FARA needs to emphasize the creation of an EverGreen Agriculture in Africa to increase resilience and productivity of agricultural systems.

Key Outcomes Group 4: Investment for innovation

The thematic focus for sustainable innovation

H: Gender and nutrition as cross-cutting interface

G: Product development – productivity and gender interface

Institutions that organized side events

Conclusion• The 36 side events that were organized under

the theme : Innovation to Improve productivity and Resilience adequately responded to the theme.

• The events also provided relevant discussion and pointers to what should be done.

• All commodity groups in agriculture viz., crops, livestock, fisheries & aquaculture commodities were considered along side with ecological and socioeconomic issues.