The United Nations Secretary-General’s Special Envoy, Dr Agnes Kalibata, has called on African financial institutions to invest in agriculture, stressing that small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are central to feeding the continent’s fast-growing population.
Speaking at the Standard Bank Africa Unlocked 2025 summit in Cape Town, she called on financial institutions to invest in agriculture to support the continent’s growing population and food needs.
Dr Kalibata, who also served as Rwanda’s Minister of Agriculture and Animal Resources from 2008 to 2014 and was President of the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA), stated that African agriculture has tripled in volume over the last 30 years, growing from 400 million metric tonnes of food to 1.2 billion metric tonnes annually.
She explained that urbanisation is driving this growth, with city populations increasing from 135 million to 500 million over the same period.
This shift has created rising demand for vegetables, fruits, meat and processed foods.
Dr Kalibata addressed common misconceptions about African agriculture, including the belief that rural families grow most of their food.
“The truth is, 55 to 60 % of the food eaten in rural Africa is bought,” she said.
She added that African agribusinesses, although typically small, ranging from $300,000 to $500,000 in size, play a significant role in feeding cities and villages.
“They provide the logistics to move 1.2 billion metric tonnes of food every year,” she said.
Dr Kalibata urged financial institutions to support the businesses that are already proving their impact.
“These are some of the things you want financial institutions to hear, because you want these businesses funded,” she said.
She noted that while limitations remain, such as weak infrastructure and policy gaps, clear market signals and investment are already moving the sector forward.
Dr Kalibata discussed the role of technology in improving productivity and access to markets.
She cited innovations in high-yield seeds, fertiliser, mechanisation and information-sharing platforms that make farming more profitable.
She said companies like Hello Tractor are helping drive mechanisation, while AI and mobile platforms are improving access to weather data, market prices and agricultural extension services.
“Technology is fast-tracking research. Things that would have happened over 100 years are happening in months,” she said.
She also highlighted the role of technology in attracting youth, pointing to the use of drones for monitoring pests and managing irrigation systems.
Dr Kalibata said Africa continues to import four major crops such as rice, wheat, maize and oilseeds worth $34 million, even though it can produce them.
She pointed to specific regions with strong production potential, including Southern Africa for wheat and oilseeds, and East Africa and West Africa for rice.
However, she noted that weak infrastructure and limited trade between African countries are holding back progress.
“One country is importing from Brazil, and another next door is producing surplus and has nowhere to put it. They share borders, but the transport ecosystem is poor,” she said.
She explained that transporting food by truck can cost up to $200 per tonne, while rail would cost $6.
Dr Kalibata said the issue is not whether African countries meet the 10 per cent budget allocation target for agriculture, but how the funds are used.
“If you put in 5 % in the right places, it adds up. However, if you put in 10 per cent in the wrong places, the value is not there,” she said.
She criticised the overuse of fertiliser subsidies, explaining that farmers also need roads, irrigation, markets and access to finance. “Fertiliser subsidies will not deliver African agriculture,” she said.
Dr Kalibata said that women make up 50 to 60 % of Africa’s agricultural workforce, but often lack access to finance and support. She mentioned the Value4Her platform, created under AGRA, which has registered 10,000 women in the agribusiness sector.
She also referenced a programme with the Mastercard Foundation that prioritises women, with 80 per cent of its target financing allocated to female-led businesses in agriculture.
Dr Kalibata said the next stocktake of the 2021 Food Systems Summit will focus on the progress made in transforming agriculture.
“We care about increased production and improved access to nutrition,” she said.
“This year, the stocktake will be looking at what type of innovation ecosystem has been put in, and what type of progress we have made, with a real focus on investment.”
The Food Systems Summit, held every two years, aims to track global efforts toward more resilient, inclusive and sustainable food systems.
