The excellent work the African Development Bank Group is doing to help Africa feed itself and the rest of the world has been commended by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
Incredibly hard work is being done to get Africa to the point where it can feed the world and itself. Secretary of State Blinken expressed her belief that it is possible during a visit to Abidjan on Tuesday, which was arranged by Dr. Akinwumi A. Adesina, President of the African Development Bank Group. The two got together at AfricaRice’s headquarters, a pan-African centre of excellence for rice development, research and capacity building that carries out agricultural programmes funded by the Bank.
“This is the first time that a US Secretary of State will visit the African Development Bank and its operations,” President Adesina stated as she greeted Secretary Blinken. The historic visit by Secretary Blinken gives our efforts to feed Africa a huge boost. I am excited to collaborate closely with Secretary Blinken and the US government to further our shared goals of assisting Africa in feeding itself and contributing to global food security. I commend Secretary Blinken for his strong leadership and dedication to food security.
“I admire the work President Biden is doing for global food security,” Dr. Adesina remarked, thanking the US for its support of the Bank Group’s major agricultural programmes. I’m thrilled about our collaboration with the US government to advance food security in Africa.
In addition, Dr. Adesina expressed gratitude to Secretary Blinken for approving a fresh $9.5 million grant to sustain the Bank’s Technologies for African Agricultural Transformation (TAAT) programme. The grant, which is a component of the broader US Government global hunger campaign “Feed the Future,” will be used for the Bank program’s TAAT II phase, which aims to assist African nations in increasing food production, implementing climate-smart technology, and expanding extension services. In an effort to increase food production and security on the continent, TAAT has so far provided 13 million African farmers across 40 nations with climate-resilient agricultural technologies and fertilisers. The funding from USAID will contribute to TAAT II’s continued outreach.
In order to find ways to collaborate with the US State Department’s Vision for Adapted Crops and Soils (VACS) initiatives and create an investment plan, the US will collaborate with the African Development Bank.
By providing more than 40 million agricultural producers with access to proven technology, TAAT hopes to quadruple the production of fisheries, livestock, and staple crops by 2025. An additional 120 million tonnes of food will be produced as a result.
In reference to that endeavour, Blinken stated: “The African Development Bank is maximising crops and creating crops that can withstand climate change together with its AfricaRice programme, coupled with the essential investments in sustainable agriculture in a clever effective approach.”
“I applaud the Bank and your leadership for the tremendous and inspiring impact of your initiatives,” Secretary Blinken remarked, praising African Development Bank President Dr. Adesina’s leadership on a global scale. You are demonstrating to others how a bank should be operated.
Secretary Blinken stated that the Biden administration was certain that investing in the cultivation of extremely nutritious and climate-resilient crops, including some of Africa’s underappreciated traditional meals, has enormous promise. These crops include rice.
In an effort to increase rice production, the Bank started the AfricaRice programme in 2018. It currently has 28 members from 28 different African countries, with 15 of them anticipating achieving rice self-sufficiency soon.
Participating in the tour was AfricaRice Director General Dr. Baboucarr Manneh, who stated, “Since 2018, rice yields have increased by 25% and livelihoods by more than 31%.”
The United States of America is the greatest cumulative contributor to the African Development Fund, which offers concessional funding to Africa’s poorest nations, and the second-largest shareholder among all African Development Bank member nations. President Adesina emphasised during the tour the long-term benefits of US funding in Bank activities that support common goals in Africa.
