MEDIA ADVISORY

3rd CAADP PERMANENT SECRETARIES’ LEADERSHIP RETREAT
“Advancing the Implementation of the Malabo Declaration on Accelerated Agricultural Growth and Transformation”

INVITATION TO REPRESENTATIVES OF THE MEDIA

What: 3rd Permanent Secretaries’ Retreat

Background:

In 2003, African leaders adopted the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) at the AU General Assembly in Maputo, Mozambique. Led by the AUC’s Department of Rural Economy and Agriculture and NEPAD Agency, CAADP helps countries eliminate hunger and reduce poverty by raising economic growth through agriculture-led development. Through CAADP, African governments agreed to allocate at least 10% of national budgets to agriculture and rural development, and to achieve agricultural growth rates of at least 6% yearly. In 2014, African leaders once again recommitted to the principles of CAADP by endorsing the AU Malabo Declaration on Accelerated Agricultural Growth and Transformation for Shared Prosperity and Improved Livelihoods. The Declaration translates the vision for Africa’s Agriculture within the First 10 Years of Implementation of the AU’s Agenda 2063.

The Malabo Declaration adopted 7 commitments comprising the 2025 vision and goals of Africa Accelerated Agricultural Growth and Transformation; including; commitment to Ending Hunger in Africa and halving Poverty by the year 2025.

Further, the Malabo Declaration, agreed that a new monitoring system would be set up to ensure that the AU Heads of State and Government, and their respective authorities, maintained accountability to peers, and to their citizenry in delivering this agricultural transformation. Consequently, the historic inaugural AU Biennial Review Report including the first-ever Africa Agriculture Transformation Scorecard (AATS) was launched on January 29, 2018 during the 30th AU Assembly of Heads of State and Government.

The 3rd Permanent Secretaries’ Leadership Retreat will serve as a peer exchange, learning and forward looking engagement platform of AU Member States in implementing the CAADP Agenda. The retreat will further discuss for the first time, the outcomes of the Inaugural Biennial Review Report and chart the way forward on how best to utilize the findings of the Report to trigger the required agricultural transformation.

Who: H.E .Amb. Josefa Sacko, Commissioner for Rural Economy and Agriculture (AUC); Dr. Eyasu Abrha State Minister, Ethiopia Ministry of Agriculture; Permanent Secretaries of Agriculture from AU Member States; RECs and Development Partners
When: September 19, 2018
Where: Mandela Hall, African Union Commission

Journalists are invited to cover the opening session at 9 a.m. at Mandela Hall, NCC.

For media queries please contact:

Ms. Carol Jilombo
Department of Rural Economy and Agriculture (DREA)
African Union Commission
Jilomboc@africa-union.org