Ministers of Agriculture of West and Central Africa Call on African Countries to Devote at Least 10% of Budget to Agriculture

On July 12 and 13, the Conference of Ministers of Agriculture of West and Central Africa was held in Dakar. The intergovernmental organization brings together 20 member countries to discuss such major issues for the agricultural sector as developing trade within regions, promoting agricultural export products, supporting sustainable development and harmonizing agricultural policy at the regional level.

During their most recent meeting, the ministers called on African countries to allocate at least 10% of their national budget to agriculture (up from 5 to 6% currently) to achieve annual growth of 6% in the sector. The objective is the same one set by the members of the African Union (AU) at the Maputo Summit in July 2003, during which African heads of state and government adopted the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) designed to eliminate poverty, ensure food security and develop Africa's economy.

Developing the second pillar of the CAADP – improving infrastructure and sales capacities to facilitate market access – was the focus for the Ministers of Agriculture of West and Central Africa. A framework document was drawn up emphasizing that poor agricultural trade between African countries is due in part to the lack of investment in infrastructure, and recommending the improvement of rural infrastructures, the creation of warehouses in port and airport zones, the development of effective trade policies and even an increase in national and foreign direct investment in agriculture.

In fact, this is quite an opportune moment to implement such measures: as Richard Mkandawire, agricultural advisor at the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD) secretariat, stated, Africa's return to the international stage in the context of the food crisis is an historic opportunity to mobilize the continent behind such major issues as reducing poverty and building food security.