By Guardian Correspondent , The Guardian
The African Heads of State and government gathered here mid this week for the Africa soil health summit have endorsed the Nairobi Declaration on Fertilizer and Soil Health, underscoring the crucial commitments to revive the nutritional balance of the continent's exhausted soils.
The Nairobi Declaration encapsulated the key discussions among African leaders, with a focus on fostering multi-stakeholder partnerships and investments to drive policies, finance, research and development, markets, and capacity building for fertilizer and sustainable soil health management across Africa.
The declaration has committed to ensure tripling of domestic production and distribution of certified quality organic and inorganic fertilizers by 2034 to improve access and affordability for smallholder farmers
It also commits to make available by 2034, to at least 70 percent of smallholder farmers on the continent, targeted agronomic recommendations for specific crops, soils, and climatic conditions to ensure greater efficiency and sustainable use of fertilizers
The heads of state have committed to support efforts of natural gas producing Member States in fertilizer production to increase their production and ensure availability at stable prices and fully operationalize the Africa Fertilizer Financing Mechanism (AFFM) to improve production, procurement, and distribution of organic and inorganic fertilizers, and soil health interventions
The AU Commission has been urged to mobilize financial and technical resources to execute these commitments in close cooperation with the various existing climate funds and ensuring that at least 70 percent of smallholder farmers have access to quality extension and advisory services on fertilizer and soil health both from public and private extension systems
It was also agreed to ensure that at least 70 percent of smallholder farmers have access to quality extension and advisory services on fertilizer and soil health both from public and private extension systems
Ministers of finance in African states have also urged to mobilize and allocate adequate resources for the implementation of the recommendations in this Declaration. The declaration also outlined the specific actions to achieve the envisioned outcomes.
Speaking during the event, Dr. William Ruto, President of Kenya, welcomed the summit's timeliness, coinciding with the launch of his government's new framework for sustainable soil management, which will guide investments and efforts to improve the health and resilience of the country's soil.
“Sixty percent of the world's uncultivated arable land is in Africa, we possess the largest potential for food production and become a global food basket. Prioritizing investments in nitrogen fertilizer production facilities is essential. Secondly, developing mechanisms for real time tracking of fertilizer market trends to ensure timely availability is crucial. Additionally, we need sustainable strategies to make fertilizers more affordable and accessible. Enhancing last-mile logistics for fertilizer distribution is equally critical. Moreover, building farmers' capacities for effective fertilizer use and soil health improvement is imperative.” he said.
Moussa Faki, Chairperson of the African Union Commission, reiterated the imperative of accelerated action on the commitments of the Nairobi Declaration to make up for lost time and advance towards the goals of earlier declarations, including the Abuja, Malabo, and Maputo Declarations, as well as the Comprehensive African Agricultural Development Programme (CAADP).
“Some African countries produce fertilizers but we depend mostly on fertilizers, making them very expensive for our farmers. Yet the African Center for Fertilizer Development based in Zimbabwe has been in existence since the 1980’s,” he said.
“We must optimise use of such existing Continental assets to boost local fertilizer production and deliver quality fertilizers to African farmers at affordable prices. This is imperative if we are to improve the Continent’s agricultural sector, key for our food sovereignty and security. These investments should also be reflected in our national budgets.”
It is estimated that the continent loses over US$4 billion worth of soil nutrients each year, severely risking Africa’s ability to feed itself.
Yet, a broad base of African farmers neither has access to fertilizers nor can they afford inputs needed to add life to their soils to reverse the downward spiral of the degradation of the physical environment.
“Safeguarding the health of African soil is a key. It’s not just about enhancing food security but also in securing environmental sustainability,“ said the Former Ethiopian Prime Minister and board chair of AGRA, Hailemariam Dessalegn.
President of Zimbabwe Emmerson Mnangagwa underscored the need to deliberately support and increase investments in agriculture.
“It is unfortunate that despite the inherent potential, Africa currently spends billions of dollars in food and fertilizer imports per year. Greater efforts must be made to leverage the availability of raw materials for the local production of mineral fertilizers and reduce our over-reliance on imports,” he said.
Hakainde Hichilema, President of Zambia, called for synergy and collaboration between policy makers and the private sector.
“We shouldn't depend on others to supply us with fertilizers from outside the continent, therefore we need to invest to increase the capacity to produce fertilizers internally using our raw material that are available. The continent has these raw materials which must be exploited effectively and we need to invest in order to exploit this resources. When we invest we must ensure that we mobilize capital which is fairly priced otherwise there will be a cost push on the fertilizer that will produce” he said.
Lazarus Chakwera, President of Malawi observed that the missing link to Africa’s food security is the health of the soil, adding that Malawi has developed a 10 year action plan on fertilizer and soil health to domesticate the continental framework.
“Our goal is to improve soil health. Improve the usage of organic and inorganic fertilizers, improve soil productivity and reduce soil degradation and soil erosion,” he said.
Nangolo Mbumba, President of Namibia, underscored the importance of a holistic approach as a critical element for addressing food demands in Africa and ensuring the long-term sustainability of global food production systems.
President Faustine Archange Touadera, Central African Republic emphasized the urgency for increased productivity to boost agricultural growth and sustainable economic development.
“Fertilizer has to be affordable and available to farmers because if it's not then we will not achieve the intended objective of increasing productivity and increase use to 50kgs/ha,” he said.
The Summit from the 7th- 9th May 2024 gathered over 4,000 participants, including 57 ministers of Agriculture and Foreign Affairs other government leaders, scientists, private sector representatives, heads of development organizations, civil society leaders, and leaders of farmer organizations.
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