Investors, development partners, private companies and government officials from Africa and beyond united in Dar es Salaam this week to explore investment opportunities in agriculture both in Tanzania and other African countries.
International and regional experts in agriculture, partnerships and investment convened at the Grow Africa Forum, organized by the African Agricultural Growth and Investment Task Force (AAGIT) in cooperation with the African Union (AU), New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) and the World Economic Forum.
The decision to host this event in Tanzania reflects the level of recognition for the active development of the country’s agriculture, driven by the Kilimo Kwanza framework. In opening the Forum, Minister for Agriculture, Food Security and Cooperatives, Jumanne Abdallah Maghembe said “The Government of Tanzania is 100% committed to realizing our country’s agricultural potential.
We know that delivering on our aspirations will mean making sure that we join up the Government’s knowledge and commitment with the energy, experience, expertise and financial and technological strengths of the private sector and Tanzania’s development partners.”
Partnership is a central theme in Tanzania’s agricultural development and was a top agenda item at the Forum where the focus was on Expanding Partnerships, Catalysing Investment, and Integrating Best Practice. In order to stimulate investment planning and mobilisation to further Africa’s agricultural potential, the Forum featured working sessions to identify agricultural investment priorities per country.
More and more investors are looking at investing in Africa’s agriculture for guaranteed, long-term returns, but also because it is a socially responsible investment that will help improve livelihoods. Africa has the potential to be the world’s breadbasket and Tanzania, in particular, has great potential.
The Southern Agricultural Growth Corridor of Tanzania (SAGCOT) hosted an investors’ roundtable to present the partnership and Investment Blueprint to investors and discuss ways to further SAGCOT’s objectives of creating profitable agribusinesses that benefit smallholder farmers and improve food security.
Permanent Secretary of the Prime Minister’s Office, Peniel Lyimo, said “Following the recent establishment of the SAGCOT Centre and the launch of the SAGCOT Partnership Forum, this investors’ roundtable is very timely. We are inspired by the level of interest and commitment from our partners in the investment community, the private sector, development partners and the farming community.
It is this spirit of partnership of collaboration in the name of our common goal – to raise agricultural productivity and improve livelihoods, particularly of smallholder farmers, in Tanzania – that will be the making of our success.”
Investors will reconvene in the first quarter of 2012 in Dar es Salaam to further explore and identify investment opportunities in SAGCOT in order to help mobilize much needed investment in the sector.
The Grow Africa Forum is brought together under the auspices of the African Agricultural Growth and Investment Task Force – a coordinating platform initiated at the 2011 World Economic Forum on Africa to support African governments in increasing private sector investment, partnership and collaboration to accelerate sustainable growth in agriculture.
About SAGCOT
The Southern Agricultural Growth Corridor of Tanzania (SAGCOT) was initiated at the World Economic Forum Africa summit in May 2010 as an inclusive public-private partnership, which aims to rapidly develop agricultural productivity and profitability in the Corridor region.
Founding partners include farmers, agri-business, donor partners, the Government of Tanzania and private companies. The Partnership will facilitate a new development process in the Corridor that will be commercially successful, while also improving food security, raising productivity, alleviating poverty and ensuring environmental sustainability. SAGCOT activities are coordinated by the SAGCOT Centre in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
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