Rome - A recent boost in sub-Saharan Africa's agricultural production indicates "a break with the past" but "concerted and purposeful policy action" is required to maintain the momentum, a United Nations food agency said Monday. After decades of decline, sub-Saharan Africa's agricultural sector - 80 per cent of which consists of smallholder farmers - grew more than 3.5 per cent in 2008, well above the 2 per cent rate of population growth, the Rome-based Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) noted.
The gains were driven by a more favourable policy environment for agriculture in many countries and higher world prices for food commodities such as wheat and rice, FAO said.
Technological advances such as the New Rice for Africa drought-resistant rice variety (NERICA) have also helped boost production in the region.
"The strong potential of agriculture in sub-Saharan Africa is welcome news: agriculture is the backbone of overall growth for the majority of countries in the region and essential for poverty reduction and food security," FAO Assistant Director-General Hafez Ghanem said.
The findings are contained in a discussion paper prepared for a High-Level Expert Forum to be held in Rome on October 12-13 2009 to discuss strategies on "How to Feed the World in 2050".
The paper calls for determined action in areas such as technological innovation, the development of markets and services and better management of natural resources to feed a growing population and eradicate hunger in the region.
Sub-Saharan Africa's population is predicted to grow from 770 million in 2005 to 1.5 to 2 billion in 2050.
Despite rapid migration from the countryside to cities and the growth in urban population, the absolute number of rural people is also likely to continue to increase.
The paper said that agricultural growth in sub-Saharan Africa is likely to be led by domestic and intra-African demand for food commodities due to urbanization and the growing population in the medium and long-term.
One of the main advantages of the region is its abundance of natural resources, including water, although distribution is very uneven.
At the moment only 3 per cent of the region's food crops are produced using irrigation compared to more than 20 per cent globally.
Land is also underused. While recognizing that any expansion of land under cultivation has environmental consequences, FAO has estimated that the potential additional land area available for cultivation in sub-Saharan Africa amounts to more than 700 million hectares.
There are many other challenges that need to be overcome by governments, international donors and the private sector, including slow progress in regional integration, governance and institutional shortcomings in some countries, conflicts and diseases like HIV/AIDS, creating employment opportunities in rural areas and adequate training for young people.
Some 218 million people in Africa, around 30 per cent of the total population, are estimated to be suffering from chronic hunger and malnutrition.
The High-Level Forum will bring together around 300 leading experts from academic, non-governmental and private sector institutions from developing and developed countries.
The aim is to prepare the ground for the World Summit on Food Security, to take place in Rome 16-18 November 2009.
