GTZ is now GIZ - Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit
Since 1 January 2011, GIZ has brought together under one roof the long-standing expertise of DED, GTZ and Inwent. For further information, go to www.giz.de/.
Since 1 January 2011, GIZ has brought together under one roof the long-standing expertise of DED, GTZ and Inwent. For further information, go to www.giz.de/.
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Securing Africa’s Food ProductionProject description
Title: Support to the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP)
Context
The agricultural sector plays a critical role in the economic and social development of Africa’s largely agriculture-based economies providing livelihoods for about 60 percent of the continent’s active labour force and contributing 17 percent to Africa’s gross domestic product. Agriculture remains a major coherent of regional market integration and plays a critical role in the fight against poverty and food insecurity. Despite its pivotal role, an average of three percent of national budgets is allocated to agriculture with international developmental assistance decreasing 75 percent since 1980. International food prices increased dramatically between 2007 and 2008 with the result that some one billion people are now classified as chronically malnourished. Africa’s leaders are intensifying efforts to find “sustainable solutions” to hunger, poverty and rising food prices. ObjectiveThe project aims at supporting selected member states of the African Union and regional economic communities to pursue regionally coordinated, coherent policies in the field of agri-business. It assists African countries to achieve higher economic growth through agricultural-led development thereby reducing hunger and poverty, enabling food and nutritional security, and growth in exports. ApproachThe Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) is the joint African Union (AU) and New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) vision and strategy for the development of African agriculture. Key objectives and targets are focused on:
CAADP is not a set of national programmes trying to work towards a similar goal but rather a common framework reflected in a set of key principles and targets collectively defined and set by African heads of state. They aim to guide country strategies and investment programmes; allow regional peer learning and review; and facilitate greater alignment and harmonisation of development efforts. GIZ (until December 2010 GTZ and InWEnt) has been supporting the New Partnership for Africa’s Development Secretariat since 2008 in its function to coordinate the continent-wide reform agenda. GIZ promotes continent-wide knowledge transfer among senior decision makers and practitioners thus increasing individual and institutional capacities through training initiatives. It strengthens the central role of the African Union Commission and the NEPAD-CAADP Unit through joint strategic planning in the implementation of their continent-wide agenda. This partnership promotes knowledge on the development of value chains, rural finance schemes, agribusiness techniques whose ultimate goal is to enhance the quality of agricultural programmes and impact of development goals. GIZ has also initiated a communications programme with the purpose of enhancing CAADP’s external image and creating awareness. GIZ has concentrated on developing CAADP’s institutional capacity with emphasis on technology dissemination in the field of policy reform, capacity-building, and investment programmes across the process structure. This expertise has strengthened partnerships and coalition-building. African networks have been initiated to provide technical assistance in the reform process for national and regional agricultural policies and strategies to achieve agriculture-based growth. GIZ has facilitated role players in the various fields and assisted in African parliamentarians to understand the pivotal of the reform processes. Results achieved so farSince the establishment of CAADP as an African-led agenda, the international community has acknowledged Africa’s immediate need for further investment in agriculture and has earmarked an additional 20 billion US-Dollar in support of Africa’s efforts. Currently 13 countries have signed political commitments to increase their expenditure in the agriculture sector. In those countries, the evidence-based reform has led to changes in the sector strategies. In Rwanda, the focus on the promotion of export-crops has been changed to a greater emphasis on staple food production in the northern, hunger-prone areas. Ghana has increased the size of arable land in the south to allow for greater modernisation of agriculture and the development of market-oriented value-chains. CAADP offers Africa and the international community a single, unified framework for planning and intervention in the agricultural sector. The escalation of food prices in 2008 was a priority on the agenda at the meeting of the African Union and the New Partnership for Africa’s Development. Through the provision of a well-established CAADP network, the continent is better placed to mobilise and coordinate the multitude of funds available to assist countries in need. The technical assistance that GIZ, and other donor organisations, provided to CAADP to set up an effective and efficient framework, allowed Africa to respond promptly to the crisis in food prices and provide humanitarian assistance to the most vulnerable. 
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