Chuks Okocha in Abuja
Former Nigerian President and African Agricultural Technology Foundation (AATF) Goodwill Ambassador for Agricultural Technology, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, has challenged African leaders to move beyond declarations and commitments on agricultural transformation and take concrete action to deliver greater productivity, food security, jobs and prosperity for the continent.
Jonathan made the call at an AATF Investors Forum held in Kigali on the sidelines of the African Food Systems Forum, where more than 5,000 participants from over 50 countries are gathered under the theme, “Investing in Africa’s Agri-Food Systems.”
According to a statement by his media aide, Ikechukwu Eze, Jonathan spoke at a youth-centred event themed ‘Igniting Youth Food Systems Leadership’, Jonathan urged countries to encourage young people by challenging them to embrace and invest in agri-food systems, while providing appropriate incentives to support their participation and innovation.
He stated further on how to make various agricultural declarations impactful: “Turning this agenda from declaration into tangible impact requires three elements working in concert: proven technologies that raise productivity and strengthen resilience; patient capital that enables long-term investment and growth; and commercialization at scale that connects innovation to markets and farmers to opportunity,” Jonathan said.
He said Africa’s agricultural transformation must no longer remain confined to policy frameworks and political commitments, stressing that agriculture is foundational to the continent’s future.
According to him, Africa’s food security, industrialisation, youth employment and resilience to climate change are all closely tied to the performance of its agricultural sector.
“Put simply, if Africa is to achieve the growth, prosperity, and development to which it aspires, agriculture must be at the center of our efforts,” he said.
Jonathan noted that African leaders have already demonstrated political commitment to agricultural transformation through continental frameworks including the African Union’s Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) and the Malabo Declaration.
The challenge now, he said, is to translate those commitments into measurable investments, policies and programmes that reach farmers and generate tangible results.
“Africa’s food systems stand at a critical crossroads,” Jonathan said, pointing to increasingly frequent and severe climate shocks, rapid population growth, limited economic opportunities for young people, and persistent gaps in storage, processing and market access.
He stressed that addressing these challenges requires stronger partnerships among governments, research institutions, the private sector, farmer organisations, development partners, donors and investors.
Jonathan also highlighted the importance of agricultural technology in accelerating transformation, arguing that proven innovations must be taken beyond laboratories and pilot projects and scaled to reach farmers across the continent.
He said his experience as President of Nigeria reinforced his conviction that sustained investment in agriculture can generate jobs, increase household incomes and strengthen food security.
It was this conviction, he explained, that led him to accept AATF’s invitation to serve as its Goodwill Ambassador for Agricultural Technology.
Jonathan commended AATF for its work over the past two decades in advancing agricultural technologies and supporting the policy and regulatory environments necessary for innovation to be adopted and scaled.
He called for continued public-private collaboration to ensure that proven technologies reach farmers while investment is mobilised to develop the next generation of agricultural solutions.
“AATF’s next decade will be shaped by two priorities that must advance together: scaling technologies that have already been proven to reach farmers’ fields, and developing the next generation of solutions for our farmers,” he said.
He therefore urged investors and development partners attending the forum to see themselves not merely as participants, but as partners in Africa’s agricultural transformation.
“Neither can succeed without capital and partners willing to support an African institution with a verifiable track record,” Jonathan said, urging investors to consider how their capital, expertise and networks could support AATF’s priorities.
He said the investor forum should mark the beginning of sustained engagement between AATF and potential partners as the organisation seeks to mobilise resources for its priorities over the next five to ten years.
Jonathan’s intervention reinforces a growing imperative across Africa: the continent has articulated the vision for agricultural transformation; the task now is to finance it, implement it and deliver results at scale.
As Africa confronts the combined pressures of food insecurity, climate change, population growth and youth unemployment, he said agriculture must be treated not simply as a sector, but as a central engine of the continent’s economic transformation and development.