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Africa has been said to be spending an estimated $70 billion annually on food imports even at the expense of her great agricultural potential in research and improved innovations across the continent.
The regional representative of the West and Central African Council for Agricultural Research and Development (CORAF), Dr. Emmanuel Njukwa said this at a recently concluded 9th African science week held in Abuja, Nigeria.
Njukwa said in his paper titled "State of Agricultural Research in Africa: Reimagining Agricultural Research in Africa from Challenges to Transformation" that Africa needs to optimize her agricultural potentials to checkmate food imports using research technologies and innovations to strengthen foods system sustainability.
He argued that African countries do not have genuine reasons for importing foods when considering her agricultural potentials stressed the need for increased technologies adaptation with partnership.
Also in an exclusive interview with Food Farm News, Njukwa said the continent's rapidly growing population presents both an opportunity and a challenge to food production, saying the population is projected to reach about 2.5 billion by 2050.
He thereby pointed the need for governments, research institutions and the private sector to invest in modern agricultural research and technologies capable of increasing food production and improving resilience against climate change challenges.
Speaking on the pattern style of our food culture he said " Our culture and food preferences are highly diverse across Africa. This diversity is one of our strengths, but it also presents challenges when designing food systems, agricultural policies and research priorities that can meet the needs of different regions"
He noted that agricultural transformation would require stronger collaboration among governments, research organisations, development partners and farmers to ensure practical adoption to ensure increased productivity and food security.
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