Nairobi, Kenya
December 3, 2014
The inaugural African Green Revolution Students Conference (AGRSC) was launched today at the Kenyatta University to discuss issues on capacity building for enhanced food production in Africa. Jointly organized by the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA), Kenyatta University, the University of Nairobi and the Horticulture Association of Kenya, the conference is bringing together over 300 delegates under the theme; Bridging the gap between science, society and industry: Building a new generation of African Soil Scientists and Agronomists.
Capacity Building, Knowledge Generation and Technology Dissemination are the key issues the conference delegates will discuss in the next 3 days. Africa as a continent is struggling to become food secure amidst various challenges that the continent has to deal with. Climate change, soil degradation, inadequate resources, inferior production equipment and farm inputs, increasing population and lack of technical capacity are amongst some of the challenges the continent has to deal with.
“Africa has 12% of the world’s population and is going through a rapid phase of development. The continent is dealing with a situation of food crisis, profound climate change, persistent poverty and shortage & mismatch of skills,” remarked Prof. Olive Mugenda in her speech read by the Deputy Vice Chancellor in charge of Administration, Prof. Paul Wainaina.
As the conference opened, issues of how to ensure that the Agricultural sector benefits from the existing technological advancement and from innovations already happening were also raised. “How do we expect to revolutionize the Agricultural sector if our farmers continue to use hoes that have been in use for centuries now?” posed Dr. Agnes Kalibata, AGRA President.
“We have made a deliberate effort to invest in capacity building in partnership with training institutions to ensure that the continent has the required expertise for enhancing food security. Through these partnerships we have trained over 600 Agricultural scientists at Masters and PhD levels across the continent,” added Dr. Kalibata.
Africa’s agriculture is at a stage where there is real need for a conversation and dialogue on how to bridge the gap that is existing between the scientific researches being generated and how the society uses these to improve the practice in the Agricultural industry.
The Cabinet Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries, Mr. Felix Koskei in a speech read on his behalf by Ms. Anne Onyango, the Director Policy and Research at the Ministry, said, “As a government, we are committed to seeing Kenyans become food secure and self-sustaining. Increasing productivity, adoption of technology and irrigation are some of our key initiatives to boost food security in Kenya as is anchored in our country’s development blue print, Vision 2030.
“Our institution is committed not only to produce as many scientists as possible but also to ensuring our graduates are well prepared to tackle challenges out there. We are committed to producing students who are job-ready, ready to take on today’s challenges through rigorous training that is both theoretical and practical,” added Prof. Mugendi.
For the next three days, the conference participants have their work clearly cut out. They have to see better ways in which the next generation can be engaged in active agricultural practice and how the continent will become food secure. It is evident that Africa is still lacking in capacity and in skills necessary to bring sustainable and real transformation in the Agriculture sector.
“The pipe is leaking,” were the words of Dr. Marie Rarieya AGRA Program Officer in charge of training at the Soil Health Program. This she said in responding to a question posed to her as regards the fact that majority of farming population in Africa is ageing whereas the youth are not very keen to join the sector and fill the gap.
The conference is striving to look at how the gap between science, society and industry can be filled to enhance sustainable agricultural productions.
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