African Union backs agricultural investment to tackle hunger
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Alwihda Info
The African Union wants to tackle the structural causes of hunger by focusing on local investment, agricultural resilience and inclusion by 2035. Its Commission chairperson, Mahmoud Ali Youssouf, advocated this approach at a meeting with the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies in Addis Ababa, according to Alwihda Info.
The Chairperson of the African Union Commission, Mahmoud Ali Youssouf, called on 3 November in Addis Ababa for investment in agriculture and action on the structural causes of hunger, at a high-level meeting between the African Union and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC). The continental organisation is relying on its 2026-2035 agricultural plan to help achieve the goal of eradicating hunger in Africa by 2035.
The plan is based on the Kampala Declaration and the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme. It sets out five priorities: strengthening production and resilience through irrigation and modern methods, developing local processing and value chains, involving more women and young people, linking food policies to peace and stability efforts, and mobilising funding.
Mahmoud Ali Youssouf referred to the effects of climate change, conflicts and supply chain disruptions on food insecurity and malnutrition. The meeting was held at the African Union headquarters in the presence of King Letsie III of Lesotho, the organisation’s champion for nutrition, and Jagan Chapagain, IFRC secretary general. The Commission chairperson also presented the goal of “zero hunger” as essential to achieving the African Union’s Agenda 2063.
