Posted on April, 7, 2025 at 09:04 am
Kenya’s agriculture sector leaders, stakeholders, and development partners gathered for a national review of the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) performance under the Malabo Declaration.
The meeting, hosted in partnership with Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) and attended by key players from the public and private sectors, research institutions, and civil society, revealed urgent gaps and critical opportunities in Kenya’s efforts to transform its agriculture and reduce poverty and hunger.
Agriculture Sector Network (ASNET) Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Agatha Thuo emphasized the importance of coordinated investment, robust data, and enabling policies to drive agricultural transformation.
“Kenya is doing relatively well in comparison to the rest of the continent. But we still have a long way to go. One major issue is the lack of adequate and timely data to track private sector investment and returns. We need accurate data to guide decisions, improve productivity, and enhance competitiveness,” said Thuo.
The Agriculture Sector Network brings together farmers, agribusiness associations, financial institutions, and corporations.
According to Thuo, the sector is already mobilizing significant private investments, but policy barriers, limited data infrastructure, and inadequate public sector funding continue to hold back progress.
“Our taxation regimes, competitiveness and cost of production must be improved if we want to penetrate the African market. Government must allow the private sector to do what it does best—innovate, produce, and trade—while focusing on creating an enabling environment through responsive policies and infrastructure,” she said.
Despite Kenya’s significant potential, with agriculture contributing over 20 percent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), public investment in the sector remains below the 10% target set in the Malabo Declaration.
Stakeholders voiced concern over this unfortunate fact that the shortfall undermines efforts to strengthen food security, create jobs, and drive rural development.
From IGAD’s perspective, a policy and food security expert with the Food Systems Resilience Project based in Kampala, Dr. Sylivia Henga, highlighted that Kenya, like many countries in the region, is off track on all seven Malabo commitments; these include halving poverty through agriculture by 2025, a deadline now upon the continent with little to show for it.
“Food insecurity in the IGAD region now affects over 62 million people. This situation is alarming and calls for integrated national dialogues and coordinated regional action. Investments in agriculture must go beyond production to include value addition, resilience to climate change, and inclusive participation of all sectors,” said Dr. Henga.
The review underscored several key challenges, including climate change, invasive pests, conflict-related displacement, poor coordination, and significant gaps in data collection and interpretation.
Dr. Henga urged the African Union and regional bodies to support member states in strengthening real-time, accurate data systems and scaling down continental frameworks to the national level.
She also advocated for cross-country learning, particularly from high-performing countries like Rwanda.
Additionally, Dr. Henga called for informal systems recognition, such as indigenous food production, informal trade, and community-based seed systems, as vital components of Africa’s food systems that deserve attention and investment.
Looking forward, key recommendations from the review were stated, as revealed by Dr. Henga. These included increasing both public and private investment in agriculture, particularly in value addition and Agri-manufacturing.
Enhancing policy coherence, coordination, and responsiveness was also suggested to improve competitiveness and reduce the cost of doing business.
To better capture contributions across the value chain and measure impact accurately, the need to strengthen data systems was emphasized.
There is also a need to implement a unified strategy through adopting an integrated, multi-sectoral approach that brings together ministries, counties, private sector players, and civil society.
As Kenya positions itself within the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), stakeholders agreed that a transformed and competitive agriculture sector is crucial not only for national food security but also for economic growth and regional trade leadership.
“The future of Kenya’s agriculture lies in synergy, investment, and data. We have the tools and the talent. Now we need commitment and coordination to get the job done,” Thuo said.
Source: KNA