Rabat – Africa’s agriculture needs to move from smallholder agriculture and evolve into a mature ecosystem capable of adapting to the climate challenge, experts argued today during a Webinar organized by Morocco’s phosphate giant OCP Group.
Joining the conversation to discuss the many challenges facing agriculture on the continent, several experts unanimously argued that African countries should put more effort in creating a mature ecosystem capable of withstanding the climate challenge.
Held on Tuesday morning, the webinar was centered around the theme of training agriculture professionals, and the model to adopt in the face of the climate change challenge and food security.
Bruno Gerard, an agrobioscience expert and professor at Mohammed VI Polytechnic University (UM6P), spoke about the wide range of issues facing agriculture in Africa. Drawing attention to the complexity of the agricultural landscape in Africa, he explained that prior to proceeding to the stage of proposing solutions to boost agriculture activities on the continent, shareholders should understand first that Africa is a large continent with diverse ecosystems.
According to the UM6P professor, solutions should be custom-made to adapt to the local context in which they are to be implemented.
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While universities do not train farmers, they can play a substantial role in training experts in agriculture and peripheral sectors — and in supporting African agriculture to adapt to current and future challenges, Gerard explained.
In addition to the climate challenge, the discussion touched on other focal issues related to the development of agricultural activities, including the question of the agency of youth within the agriculture value chain.
Consultant and agro-economist Jean-Marie Seronie shared his views on youth engagement in agriculture, noting that the current “rhetoric surrounding agriculture is driving young people away.”
As the prevailing sentiment in “Africa, like in France, is that things are not working well,” he argued, it remains particularly difficult to encourage young people looking for career prospects within the agriculture chain value.
However, the expert noted that he “is not worried” about the shrinking of the labor force in Africa’s agriculture. One-third of farmers in Africa do not come from families who have been engaged in agriculture for generations, he explained, adding that this means agriculture still appeals to a relatively sizable number of young people across the continent.
Seronie concluded by underscoring the importance for both farmers and agriculture consulting firms to adapt to the climate change challenge for agriculture consulting firms not unlike farmers.
