By MAIMBOLWA MULIKELELA –
THE African Development Bank group (AfDB) has approved an agricultural transformation strategy for competitive and inclusive agribusiness sector.
This will help create wealth, improve lives and secure the environment.
AfDB will invest about US$24 billion and leverage additional investments through equity, quasi equity, debt and risk instruments to catalyse investments at scale from the private sector and with co-financing from traditional donors and new players.
The total investment for the realisation of the transformation agenda over 10 years is estimated at between US$315 and $400 billion with annual returns of $85 billion, when fully funded.
This is contained in a statement issued in Lusaka over the weekend.
AfDB director of Agriculture and Agro-industry department Chiji Ojukwu said the identified financing gap was estimated at $23 billion which can be met using innovative de-risking tools and blended financing from combined sovereign, pension and private equity fund.
According to the statement, the “Feed Africa Strategy” makes a strong case for reversing the situation of a continent that spends $35.4 billion on food imports annually despite being home to 65 per cent of the world’s undeveloped arable land.
