AU Commissioner Tumusiime meets Mr. Bleser to discuss Agriculture Development and Food Security in the Horn of Africa / Invitation to the representatives of the media
ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia, August 25, 2011/African Press Organization (APO)/ — Invitation to the representatives of the media
WHAT: Meeting between H.E Tumusiime Rhoda Peace, Commissioner for Rural
Economy and Agriculture, African Union Commission and Mr. Peter
Bleser, Parliamentary State Secretary at the Germany’s Federal Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection; on Agriculture Developments through Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CADDP) and Food Security in the Horn of Africa.
WHEN: Wednesday 25th August 2011 at the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa.
WHERE: UN Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) Conference Centre, Addis Abeba, Ethiopia.
WHO: Organized by Department of Rural Economy and Agriculture of the African
Union Commission (AUC).
Objective: The main objective of the meeting, which will take place in the margins of the AU pledging Conference, is to discuss the Agriculture Development through CAADP and Food Security in the Horn of Africa and how German Government can be better aligned to support Africa’s agricultural agenda.
Background:
As agriculture remains a key sector for economic growth in Africa, the food crisis in the Horn of Africa, caused by a tragic regional drought, which had been predicted since November 2010, affected about 13 million people and was coupled with a famine crisis in Somalia (affecting about 3.7 million people). This situation points out the failure by development agencies and concerned governments to develop and implement early warning actions (1) and identify strategic and long-term options for this challenge to resolve it once and for all (2).
While there is no unifying funding appeal for the food crisis and a parting of the funding addressed to the food crisis from other humanitarian funding, AU’s plan for the HOA is based on an emergence response for the short term but also on long term interventions, contained in the broad CAADP and involving concerned governments in implementing their CAADP-based agriculture and food security plans to build up long term resilience to drought and weather related hazards.
The German CAADP Support Programme aimed at strengthening the roles and capacities of AUC and the New Partnership for Agricultural Development (NEPAD) Coordinating Agency in the implementation of the main commitments of the Maputo Declaration 2003. Commissioned by the German Ministry of Cooperation and Development (BMZ), it had been focusing on three main areas since the beginning of the programme in 2009:
-Support to CAADP processes
-Implementation of selected National Agricultural Investment Plans (NAIPs)
-Continental peer learning
Participants:
Participants on this meeting will be composed of AU commission, German members of Parliament and Diplomats.
All media representatives are invited to participate and cover the inauguration event on Thursday 25 August 2011, at the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa.
SOURCE
African Union Commission (AUC)
