Children play in drought-hit fields in Macheke, Mashonaland East Province, Zimbabwe, March 10, 2019. (Photo by Shaun Jusa/Xinhua)
AFRICA'S ENDEAVOR
The 23rd Assembly of African Union (AU) Heads of State and Government that took place in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea in June 2014 adopted a sweeping declaration on achieving the vision of a hunger-free continent.
During the summit, African leaders renewed their commitment to allocate at least 10 percent of national budget to agriculture and enact policies that aim to improve post-harvest management, value addition and market linkages.
Policymakers and experts agreed that African countries can seize the moment and turn the hungry continent into a prized breadbasket.
Abdoulaye Bio Tchane, Benin's minister of state for planning and development, told Xinhua that adopting new agricultural technologies, regional cooperation, policy reforms and investments in school feeding programs is key to achieving zero hunger in the continent.
Benin like many countries in the Sahel region is yet to overcome the hunger crisis with UN statistics indicating that a tenth of the country's 12 million population are food insecure.
Guy Mesmin Oyila Adoua, the World Food Program (WFP) representative in Benin, said that streamlining agricultural value chains from production, harvesting, storage and marketing could reduce the hunger burden in the greater Sahel region.
While hunger and malnutrition continue to harm many African countries, progressive leadership and policy reform are offering a silver lining.
Peter Smerdon, the spokesperson for WFP east Africa Regional Bureau based in Nairobi, said that political support for Africa's agricultural transformation agenda, conflict resolution, investing in climate smart agriculture and social safety nets for the vulnerable could help solve Africa's hunger challenge.
"The AU should leverage on its pivotal political role to end conflicts and instability that are key drivers of hunger in the continent," Smerdon told Xinhua, adding that intra-African trade could also provide a durable solution to the continent's endemic food insecurity.
