1. UN ECONOMIC COMMISSION FOR AFRICA
DEVELOPMENT EFFECTIVENESS IN AFRICA Applying Mutual Accountability in Practice   Agricultural Performance and Trade Issues: Achievements, Constraints and Challenges
UN ECONOMIC COMMISSION FOR AFRICA
11/20/2018

2. Importance of agriculture for achieving the MDGs in Africa
PRESENTATION OUTLINE
Importance of agriculture for achieving the MDGs in Africa
Constraints, opportunities and challenges for the development and structural transformation of African agriculture
Action frontiers and performance monitoring of mutual accountability for agricultural performance and trade issues in Africa
11/20/2018

3. IMPORTANCE OF AGRICULTURE (1)
70% of the poor in Africa live in rural areas
Livelihoods of 90% of rural people depend on agriculture
60% of the total African labor force is employed in agriculture – plus non-farm urban employment linked to agriculture
Backward and forward linkages between agriculture and other economic sectors are important for economic growth – inter-sector growth multipliers of 1-5 to 2.7
Go beyond a narrow perspective of agriculture as farming to a comprehensive approach to the food and agriculture system including: technology; input markets; farm production; product processing, marketing and trade
11/20/2018

4. IMPORTANCE OF AGRICULTURE (2)
Structural transformation of the food and agricultural system in Africa is key for:
Reducing poverty through broad-based economic growth
Enhancing food security
Developing the domestic/regional markets
Creating value-added and employment
Improving the export performance
Agriculture features as top-priority productive sector in key initiatives for Africa’s development: AU/NEPAD, Millennium Project, Commission for Africa, and this Mutual Review
11/20/2018

5. CONSTRAINTS, OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES (1)
Lack of sufficient and consistent priority given to agriculture by African governments and development partners
Internal and external factors have impeded a cumulative process of agricultural transformation
Internal constraining factors include:
Ineffective or misguided policies
Weak regional integration of commodity chains
Poor access to financing and insufficient investment
Poor infrastructure
Inadequate development/management of the natural resources
Poor access to agricultural innovation
Recurrent risks of natural disasters (climate pests, etc.)
11/20/2018

6. CONSTRAINTS, OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES (2)
African agriculture is seriously undercapitalised -- more domestic investment and development assistance is needed for improving the supply side
There are encouraging success stories to build on, e.g.:
Decline of malnutrition rates in West Africa due to significant increase in food and export crop production
Nigeria is No. 1 producer of cassava in the world
success of horticultural exports in such countries as Kenya
Food and agriculture systems are constrained by missing or incomplete markets, e.g. for rural credit or transport. Food-surplus regions face difficulties in supplying food‑deficit ones
11/20/2018

7. CONSTRAINTS, OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES (3)
New strategies are also needed to address 2 key constraints:
Agricultural commodity price volatility and the related challenge of finding affordable price stabilization and insurance mechanisms
Declining international commodity prices and the challenge of diversification, productivity increase and value-addition in agriculture
African agricultural markets are fragmented in sub-optimal national/sub‑regional segments, relatively closed to each other, but open to imports from outside Africa
Need to to accelerate and deepen regional integration of strategic agricultural commodity chains
11/20/2018

8. CONSTRAINTS, OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES (4)
Externally, African agriculture has been hurt by protectionist (tariff and non-tariff) policies, domestic agricultural support, export subsidies and “dumping” by OECD countries
Multilateral trade reforms under the Doha Development Agenda present both opportunities and risks for African agriculture
Adequate mechanisms are needed to help African countries deal with short‑run adjustment costs and to offset negative effects from the erosion of preferences
11/20/2018

9. CONSTRAINTS, OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES (4)
AU/NEPAD CAADP is a framework of consensual policies and priorities for African governments, regional organizations, farmers, private agribusiness, and development partners
Endorsed by African Heads of State and Government, 2003; and supported by the Maputo Declaration on agriculture, and the Sirte Declaration on Agriculture and Water
NEPAD has just completed a planning exercise resulting in sub-regional/regional Priority Action Plans and Early Actions for the implementation of the CAADP pillars:
Land and water resources development
Rural infrastructure and trade capacities for market access
Food supply chains and responses to emergency food crises
Agricultural research, technology dissemination and adoption
11/20/2018

10. ACTION FRONTIERS -- AFRICAN COUNTRIES
Fulfill commitments to increased investment in agriculture and rural development
Implement NEPAD CAADP, with emphasis on intra-regional trade and research and development efforts in agriculture
Promote public and private sector institutional development and partnerships for agricultural price stabilization, risk insurance, credit, infrastructure and extension services
Promote public-private partnerships for contract farming and private investment in agro-processing and extension services
Participate in international co-operation to offset price fluctuations of key commodities of importance to Africa
Establish an African-wide schools nutritional program
11/20/2018

11. ACTION FRONTIERS -- OECD COUNTRIES
Deliver reform on the three key pillars of agricultural negotiations in the Doha Development Round – market access, export subsidies and domestic support
Up-scale aid to the agricultural sector and provide support for the NEPAD CAADP
Assist African countries to cope with trade adjustment problems resulting from commodity price trends and preference erosion
Re-evaluate scope and effectiveness of international mechanisms to cope with external shocks caused by extreme price fluctuations of key commodities
Assist African countries to advance trade facilitation efforts
11/20/2018

12. PERFORMANCE MONITORING
NEPAD/CAADP provides for a monitoring and evaluation mechanism that can be used for tracking progress on most action frontiers for African countries
This mechanism needs to be completed and supported within the framework of the ECA-OECD Mutual Review process
THANK YOU.
11/20/2018