The Department of Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy and Sustainable Environment (DARBE), convened a Senior Management Meeting on 21st July 2023 to deliberate on several strategic meetings and events that the Department would be organising in the second half of 2023. Under the AU2063 flagship programmes these activities are important for the continental social- economic development through Agriculture, environment and Blue economy.

In her remarks, H.E Ambassador Josefa Sacko, Commissioner for Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy and Sustainable Environment (ARBE) at the AU Commission called on for commitment, unity and close collaboration among the staff members, and urged them to work as team and expedite the successful implementation of activities and events lined up for 2023 to ensure that these bring the desired impact to our people on the continent. “Under the AU agenda 2063, DARBE has launched a number of activities this year to bring African voices to a front stage. “We are conducting activities in line with African Union’s theme of the year on Accelerating the implementation of the AfCFTA as well as key events to ensure greater focus on key issues linked to build  Resilient Socio-Agricultural Food Systems, Climate Action, Green recovery, Blue economy among others”, she added.

H.E Amb. Josefa Sacko, expressed the importance of the upcoming events to the continent stating that, no continent can develop without first being able to feed its people. “Over the last decades, Africa has grown more dependent on imported agricultural goods instead of developing its own. DARBE has the mandate to reverse this trend through alignment of all activities and events to ensure the right policies and interventions are adopted by our member states to ensure that Africa is in position to feed its own population and make our continent resilient against external shocks” she said.

The following event were presented by the senior management, and the Commissioner provided the necessary guidance and support to ensure successful implementation with the desired impact. The activities include: 

The African Climate Action Summit on 4-6 September 2023, scheduled to be hosted by the Government of Kenya and will convene Heads of State, Government, and other stakeholders from across Africa and beyond to address the pressing challenges posed by climate change and foster collaboration for a sustainable future. Guided by the theme, 'Driving Green Growth and Climate Finance Solutions for Africa and the World,' Africa will, through ACS, seek to consolidate global climate action around climate financing and climate positive development, solidify Africa standpoint on climate change going forward, and use the Summit to showcase Africa’s immense climate action potential and attract new partnerships in green growth, especially in niche sectors such as renewable energy, sustainable agriculture, and critical minerals among others.

The 4th All Africa Post-Harvest Congress and Exhibition, 19 - 22 September 2023, in Addis Ababa. The congress will provide a platform for exhibitors to showcase their latest innovative technologies, practices, and tools for postharvest food loss/waste reduction.

The Africa Fertiliser and Soil Health (AFSH) Summit, in the first week of November in Nairobi, Kenya. The AFSH Summit will convene Heads of State and Government and other stakeholders from across Africa and beyond to highlight the crucial role of fertilizer and soil health in stimulating sustainable productivity growth in African agriculture and to agree on a 10-year Africa Fertilizer and Soil Health Action Plan and declaration to guide implementation.

The World and African Decade of Afforestation Summit, Brazzaville, Congo, from 9^th to 12^th November 2023. The summit will convene Heads of State and Government and other stakeholders from across Africa and beyond to provide an opportunity to make ambitious progress on the preservation of tropical forests, which are at the heart of climate and biodiversity issues in Africa as well as remobilising political attention around the safeguarding of these forests, threatened by deforestation and overexploitation.

The Fifth Ordinary Session of the Specialized Technical Committee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy and Environment (ARDWE) from 14^th to 17^th November 2023. The STC is composed of Ministers or senior officials responsible for ARDWE, they will provide guidance on the preparation of projects and programmes of the Union to be submitted to the Executive Council and the Assembly in January/February 2024. They also ensure the supervision, follow-up and evaluation of the implementation of decisions taken by the organs of the Union and the coordination and harmonization of projects and programmes of the Union.

The 5th Conference on Land Policy in Africa, 21^st to 24^th November 2023 in Addis-Ababa, Ethiopia This is a tripartite consortium consisting of the African Union Commission (AUC), the African Development Bank (AfDB) and United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) will be holding the Fifth Conference on Land Policy in Africa (CLPA) in the context of the ‘Year of AfCFTA: Acceleration of the African Continental Free Trade Area Implementation’, which is the AU Theme of the year. 

The 19^th Comprehensive Africa Agricultural Development Programme (CAADP) Partnership Platform (PP) from 1^st to 3^rd November 2023. The CAADP PP will serve as an opportunity for main constituencies involved in supporting agriculture transformation on the continent to reflect on the main course of actions to bring Africa back on track towards agriculture transformation for economic development and improved livelihoods.

On the Post-Malabo Process for 2026-2036: the Post Malabo is a strategic Policy issue, led by the H.E Commissioner, for Agriculture, Rural Development Blue Economy and Sustainable Environment (ARBE), and since the process around the two meetings that took place from the 5^th to 7^th July 2023 in Casablanca regarding Post Malabo did not respect the due procedure, the Commissioner took note of the outcomes from these two meetings, but decided to herself initiate the process engaging the two directorates (Agriculture and Rural Development and  Blue Economy and Sustainable Environment) of the department as well as the Specialized Technical Offices. The next step will be to engage with AU Organs, the Regional Economic Communities (RECs) and the Permanent Representatives of Countries (PRC). The outcomes of these highly consultative and engaging meetings will be presented to partners and then validated by the STC on Agriculture, Rural Development, Water and Environment (ARDWE).

In this regard, Commissioner Josefa Sacko, declared as null and void the press release on the Post-Malabo process that was circulated on 20th July 2023 and uploaded on the AU website, (also attached) as it had not followed the due process.

She stated that, under her leadership, an interdepartmental task-force will be established with representatives from the Department’s Specialized Technical Offices (STOs) and Agencies to steer the process until the endorsement of the Post-Malabo Agenda and processes by the STC ARDWE.

For further information, please contact:

Mr. Lilio Rodrigues, Special Assistant to Commissioner, Department of Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy and Sustainable Environment, African Union Commission; Email RodriguesL@africa-union.org

For media inquiries, please contact:

1. Mr. Molalet Tsedeke, Information and Communications Directorate | African Union Commission|+251-911-630 631; Molalett@africa-union.org

2. Mr Jose Bartolomeu Alfico, Communication Consultant to Commissioner, Department of Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy and Sustainable Environment, African Union Commission; Email; Email: alficoj@africa-union.org

Information and Communication Directorate, African Union Commission I E-mail: DIC@africa-union.org
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