Contribution to CAADP implementation

The Comprehensive African Agriculture Development Program (CAADP), launched in 2003 in Maputo by heads of States and government under the auspices of the African Union (AU) and the New Partnership for African Development (NEPAD), is the most ambitious attempt to support agriculture development in Africa. This effort is entirely Africa-led to respond to the lack of ownership, coordination and long term sustainability resulting from previous donor-funded attempts to make African agriculture efficient and competitive.

The next 10 years of the CAADP recognizes the relevance of the original vision, “Agriculture as a driver for poverty alleviation, food security and elimination of hunger”. Specifically, recognizing quality seed as a major conduit for increasing crop productivity, the CAADP framework aims at ensuring a high degree of seed security as a pathway towards the attainment of food security in Africa.

This is a key goal reaffirmed by the African Union as part of the goals of the agricultural sector in the next ten years under CAADP. In summary, the overall CAADP seed sector goal is reflected in the resolution on agricultural inputs adopted in the Malabo Declaration of the 23rd AU Heads of State and Government Summit held in June 2014, as follows: “To enhance the cost-effective production and utilization of quality agricultural inputs that are affordable, accessible and profitable (to all stakeholders) to achieve sustainable food and nutrition security by 2025”. The actions that are recommended to be taken in order to achieve this goal include the following:

• within AU’s ASBP and related activities, conduct initiatives for the development of competitive and sustainable seed production and utilization;
• promote support to national and sub-regional efforts to foster Public Private Partnerships in the seed sector;
• develop appropriate organizational and financing mechanisms, including the strengthening of smallholder and integrated seed systems, to facilitate access to quality seed and planting materials.

According to the CAADP implementation strategy and roadmap (Implementation Strategy and Roadmap (IS&R) to achieve the 2025 Vision on CAADP), two objectives are to be achieved to deliver on the 2025 vision for Africa’s agriculture:

• Objective 1 – Transformed agriculture and sustained inclusive growth, which focuses on the technical (biophysical, economic and social) measures and practices which need to be taken on the ground;
• Objective 2 – Strengthened systemic capacity to implement and deliver results, which cover the systemic changes in the operational environment (policies, and policy and institutional changes) needed to support the implementation.

The priority interventions areas for AfricaSeeds are in conformity with Strategic Action Areas (SAA) of the two CAADP IS&R objectives, as follows:

Objective 1 SAAs

• Adopt measures to increase sustainable agricultural production and productivity;
• Develop markets infrastructure, regional trade and integration, and value chains;
• Increase resilience of livelihoods and production systems to climate variability and change and other shocks.

Objective 2 SAAs

• Strengthen capacity for evidence-based planning, review and dialogue;
• Review and implement policy institutional reforms;
• Strengthen leadership, coordination and partnerships;
• Enhance skills, knowledge and agricultural education;
• Strengthen data and statistics for evidence-based planning, implementation and monitoring and evaluation, as well as review processes;
• Identify and enhance innovative models for increased public and private financing for agriculture investment.

AfricaSeeds therefore aims at contributing to the achievement of CAADP goals through the alignment of its priority intervention areas with the identified SAAs in the CAADP implementation strategy and roadmap.