Africa’s food import bill may surge to $110 billion by 2025, going by the current import reliance trend.

However, the African Union (AU), and the United Nations (UN), have canvassed unhindered trade integration among countries in the continent.

Stakeholders, who gathered at the Africa Trade Forum 2018, in Lagos, believe the continent would not meet its growth aspirations unless it supports the manufacturing sector, and enhances trade facilitation across borders.


They harped on adequate utilisation of its water resources and massive investment in sea trade as well as exploiting the vast opportunities in agriculture.

National Country Director, TechnoServe, Larry Umunna, in his presentation, said: “Africa spent approximately $35 billion on food imports in 2016, and if left unchecked, the continent’s food import bill may surge to $110 billion by 2025.

“The continent is home to 50 per cent of the world’s cultivatable land, and has vast unexploited water resources and various agro-ecological zones,” he stated.

Meanwhile, the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, said in its latest bulletin that, “the potential of the blue economy, which incorporates a range of productive sectors in trade and marine services, is presently underutilised.

“Approximately 90 per cent of Africa’s trade is sea borne, but African-owned ships accounts for only 1.2 per cent of global shipping, and 0.9 per cent of gross tonnage, while African ports handle six per cent of global water borne traffic, and three per cent of global container traffic,” it stated.


Executive Secretary, Economic Commission of Africa, Vera Songwe, commended African countries for coming together on trade, adding that the new African Continental Free Trade Agreement)AfCFTA), is a game changer.

She added that the digital economy that would be introduced under the new trade regime would cut cost, and allow for seamless trading of goods across the continent.

Nigeria’s Minister for Industry, Trade and Investment, Okechukwu Enelamah, said the country is also interested in growing African trade, but needed to study the provisions of the AfCFTA.

He said: “Our countries, individually, and our African Union, collectively, are confronted with a complex of problems that are compounding. These include demographic pressures; a population growth rate that has out-stripped Gross Domestic Product growth rates; unemployment; food insecurity; and, the justified impatience of a youthful African population, demanding for a better life.

“There is progress on our continent. But, we need to move much faster, more purposefully, with improved coordination and greater discipline to harvest the abundance of opportunities.

“The pace of change and transformation in the global economy beyond Africa has accelerated. Africa cannot afford to stand still or proceed at a slow pace. As with the expression, whenever you wake is your morning. Now that Africa has woken up we must shift into speed gear and accelerate. We must be more business-like,” he said.

https://www.akelicious.net/2018/11/africas-food-import-to-hit-110-billion.html

Shameless continent of DARKNESS, where only oil grows. Nigeria sells oil to import food!


When will Yusuf Buhari-Jibril start farming?
Any NASS members’ children planning to start farming?
Or na OYEL dem go chop die?

Africa! a shithole continent!

Shaaaaa...im! big shame! O Africa! Short sighted and indifferently Covetous governments of perversions and corruption. no plan for the future of their citizens except to snatch it from them. Agricultural practices are increasing but poorly funded. Birthrate is seriously exploding but these guys don't care. People who receive no dividends from their governments cannot stop giving birth to congregations just because they are adviced to na. Well I believe that God is raising Men and Women to bury this shame with these persistent failed governments, especially in my country. I am one�

Naija and foreign goods sha

More food for the country, but no money to purchase them. 80% of food import are going to the politicians and rich people in the soceity.

Africa is a failed state.

Na so so importation

Ok

Africa arise and take the next step




Abeg check wetin I dey sell and recommend pls

Even with all the arable land?We need to do more in agriculture and reduce frenzy for foreign junk.-

Dannybammz:
Africa! a shithole continent!

What have u done to help the situation?

israelmao:
Even with all the arable land?We need to do more in agriculture.

The main issue is seed development

We need to develop our own seeds for the product we import

Useless continent that imports almost everything it consumes

A tragedy.

And Nigeria has more arable land than china.

I am sure God marvels at the level of resource under-utilization going on in africa.

israelmao:
Even with all the arable land?We need to do more in agriculture and reduce frenzy for foreign junk.-

Thing is we always look for the easy way out. So sad

Sad
.. But I'm not surprised. We've always cherished foreign things... Our clothes are foreign, our lingua franca foreign our God foreign, now na food..

Now back to the conspiracies..

The Way Fruits That Used To Be Sweet Tastes These Days Eh ... You'd Think There's A Conspiracy Somewhere to Make Our Fruits Unpalatable and Uneatable.. �

I Guess The Plan Is To Genetically Destroy Our Fruits (Yes they can.. They are capable of anything) So That We'll Be Dependent on Them for Fresh And Palatable Fruits ... Grow their Economy...


... Have you ever wondered why the life expectancy of an average African drops every decade..

I remember ten years ago we all thought cancer na Oyibo thing.. Now it is even ravaging our continent more than theirs.. Our is worst gan because we don't hv the facilities to tackle the problem.....



Africa is in trouble and no one can save us

RTSC:
And Nigeria has more arable land than china.

I am sure God marvels at the level of resource under-utilization going on in africa.

True. These whites and Asians wish they had just what we dont use. Lots of sunshine all year round. Some of those countries you cant grow anything meaningful...

No wonder we struggle to sell any farm produce we take to the market.
Look how difficult it is to produce beans, yet a bag is as cheap as 11k. Can 11k pay for my expenses and still help me build a life?
They keep shouting "go to farm". Yet, after all the hard labour, after all the scorching hot sun, after all the heavy rainfall, they still price our goods like they are doing us a favour buying it.

God's willing, we'll make it through this agriculture one day. Let them keep on importing.

Useless country!

i thought they said Buhari helped local farmers?

What I don’t understand is why we as Africans are importing food when the Land is so Fertile. There’s more to this than meets the eye . I strongly believe

Nawa oooo, importation of energy at this her age. Shameless continet. Africa's shitehole

Sad! Failure of governance. Who killed cocoa, groundnut, kolanut, rubber, palm oil, cashew nut, beans, yam, plantain? These were once exports from Nigeria.

KanwuliaExtra:
Shameless continent of DARKNESS, where only oil grows. Nigeria sells oil to import food!


When will Yusuf Buhari-Jibril start farming?
Any NASS members’ children start farming?
Or na OYEL dem go chop die?

a USEFUL and ARABLE CONTINENT with a large chunk of useless people and leaders.
Here is a continent without NATURAL DISASTER, yet we import food from those that experience LandSlide, Land Tremors, Earth Quakes, Hurricanes, Tsunamis, Avalanches

jayAjoku:
What I don’t understand is why we as Africans are importing food when the Land is so Fertile. There’s more to this than meets the eye . I strongly believe

BLACK AFRICANS have impervious skulls

Believe me blacks are cursed!!!!


African blacks are extremely cursed!!!!!

Some of these news pain to the bone, I no go lie

Tufikwa

mrakeli62:


“The continent is home to 50 per cent of the world’s cultivatable land, and has vast unexploited water resources and various agro-ecological zones,” he stated.




Meanwhile, the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, said in its latest bulletin that, “the potential of the blue economy, which incorporates a range of productive sectors in trade and marine services, is presently underutilised.



“Approximately 90 per cent of Africa’s trade is sea borne, but African-owned ships accounts for only 1.2 per cent of global shipping, and 0.9 per cent of gross tonnage, while African ports handle six per cent of global water borne traffic, and three per cent of global container traffic,” it stated.

Reasons like the bold is why we can't sit down and wait for private hands to go into agriculture. The Africa govt is one that frustrates citizens with corruption and bureaucracy. The revolution must start with the govt but unfortunately the govt is always trying to make agric look feasible for private individuals.

EVILFOREST:

BLACK AFRICANS have impervious skulls

Thank you for that BLACK AFRICANS part.
The northern African people don't have such mentality.

mrvitalis:

The main issue is seed development

We need to develop our own seeds for the product we import

Are you smoking seed ?

Seed isn't a big deal. Corruption is. With N10,000 I can import virtually any kind of seed from aliexpress or banggood or indiamart.

Have you asked why fertilizer supply chain to farmers still have a cabal controlling it?
Have you asked why Nigeria isn't doing large scale mechanized farming?
Why we can't process cocoa into high quality chocolate (a $100b industry 65% powered by African grown cocoa bean)? Why 30% of harvest is destroyed by poor storage or pest?
corruption is the answer.