Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, President of the African Development Bank (AfDB), asserts that the export of agricultural products with added value is the key to the continent’s economic prosperity.
This was stated by Akinwumi on Wednesday at the 2023 Africa Investment Forum (AIF) Market Place in Marrakesh, Morocco.
“Unlocking Africa’s Value Chains” is the forum’s theme.
He gave a speech at the Alliance for Special Agro-Industrial Processing Zones (SAPZs) inaugural ceremony.
He said that Africa has to take the lead in food and agriculture globally in order to contribute to the world’s food supply.
Africa has to stop exporting its basic agricultural products in order to achieve this. It is imperative to acknowledge that exporting raw commodities is the surest route to poverty, whereas exporting value-added products is the path to prosperity.
And for that reason, SAPZs are crucial. They offer vital infrastructure to help Africa’s agro-industrial growth.
“The objective is to fully utilise its agricultural potential by establishing food processing and manufacturing enterprises within the designated zones.”
“The zones will enhance productivity, scale economies, and the efficiency of food and agricultural value chains, thereby supporting the transformation of the agricultural sector.”
Adesina claims that SAPZs provide Africa with the infrastructure-enabled platforms it needs to transform its vast agricultural resources into viable sources of income.
He stated that in order to promote the creation of SAPZs, the bank raised more than $661 million from other development partners and supplied 853 million dollars in finance.
The Islamic Development Bank, the Korean Export-Import Bank, the European Union, the Arab Bank for Economic Development, and the International Fund for Agricultural Development are some of our esteemed partners.
READ ALSO: AfDB and allies contribute $1 billion to finance Nigeria’s SAPZs
In order to support the Common Africa Agro-Parks Programme, we are also collaborating with the African Union.
“Together, we have raised 1.5 billion dollars to support the creation of 25 SAPZs across 11 African nations,” he declared.
The president of the AfDB stated that in order for Africa to benefit from the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and extend SAPZs throughout its nations, the continent has to increase its partnerships, alliances, and resource base.
He was excited about the growing number of partners working together to quickly scale up SAPZs throughout Africa.
Over the next five years, the Alliance hopes to mobilise at least two billion dollars in funding and investment pledges from partners and members.
“If this financing goal is met, an additional 15 to 20 SAPZs projects in different countries throughout the continent will be delivered.”
“The Alliance will raise capital for project preparation, project development and construction, and tenant company financing through various investment windows,” he stated.
By doing this, according to Adesina, the Alliance would close the crucial finance gap, support ongoing projects, and generate funds in support of the shared objective of boosting agricultural value addition in Africa.
In addition, he said, the Alliance would offer project preparation funding, debt and equity investments, technical support, and project monitoring and supervision.
Dr. Benedict Oramah, President of the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), also spoke, stating that financing large-scale projects in Africa was hampered by political unrest across the continent.
On the other hand, Oramah demanded a thorough plan and proposal for financing projects across the continent.
He stated that resource allocation was critical and that budget financing posed a serious danger to project implementation and funding.
Countries should abide by continental regulations, and anything that benefits business should be treated fairly.
Signing concessions and agreements pertaining to the constitution is vital. Supporting profitable products is also crucial, he continued.
According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), the partners promised a further contribution of roughly three billion dollars during the SAPZs’ inaugural ceremony.
NAN
