Why Africa's next transformation must be built on agriculture and agro-processing

In every African market, from Dakar to Dar es Salaam, the sounds and smells of trade tell a story that is bigger than food. They are the pulse of Africa’s economic potential. Every sack of maize, every truck of tomatoes, every carton of processed juice reflects the continent’s most powerful yet underutilized driver of prosperity: its agri-food systems.

Agriculture is not simply about subsistence. It is about the structural transformation of Africa’s economies. It is about jobs in rural industries, incomes for smallholders, the growth of agro-processing, and the creation of dynamic export markets. If Africa is to industrialize and compete globally, it must begin with the sector that already employs the majority of its people and anchors rural livelihoods.

The ongoing Africa Food Systems Forum (AFSF) in Dakar offers a moment to reset this narrative. This is not just a conversation about food shortages or hunger relief. It is a dialogue about how agriculture and food systems can serve as the backbone of development, powering industrialization and creating dignified work for Africa’s youth.

The scale of the opportunity is evident. Africa’s agricultural output has grown at 4.3 percent annually since 2000 — the fastest rate in the world. Yet, as the Africa Food Systems Report 2025 shows, only 12 to 15 percent of agricultural GDP comes from agro-processing, leaving much of the value captured elsewhere. That gap represents billions of dollars in lost jobs, income, and foreign exchange. Closing it is the pathway to transformation.

To seize this opportunity, we must begin with coherence and delivery. For too long, fragmented policies and abrupt shifts in regulation have discouraged investors and left farmers vulnerable. Policy coherence and delivery must come before finance. Governments must anchor agriculture and agro-processing as the backbone of their national development strategies. Meeting the 10 percent budget target agreed under the Maputo, Malabo, and Kampala Declarations is not a bureaucratic box to tick; it is a down payment on Africa’s economic independence.

Finance, while essential, must follow this clarity of vision. The truth is that Africa’s farmers, traders, and processors cannot transform the sector with scraps of credit. Donors and international development partners must step up in ways that crowd in much larger flows from development finance institutions and local investors. Development banks and international partners must be willing to blend their capital, de-risk investment, and support pipelines of bankable projects. Diaspora remittances, pension funds, and sovereign wealth can be channeled into agro-industrial growth, but only if policy and regulatory environments are clear and predictable.

At the same time, infrastructure must be scaled strategically. Less than seven percent of Africa’s cropland is irrigated. Forty percent of food produced in Sub-Saharan Africa is lost before reaching markets because of inadequate storage, poor transport, and unreliable energy. Rural roads remain largely unpaved, and electricity access averages below 30 percent in many rural areas. These are not just agricultural weaknesses; they are constraints on the broader productive economy. Investments in irrigation, logistics corridors, cold storage, and digital connectivity are investments in industrialization itself, because they allow agriculture to supply factories, processors, and exporters at scale.

This transformation must also be inclusive. Africa’s population is the youngest in the world, with nearly 60 percent under the age of 25. Women already form the backbone of food production and trade. Yet both groups remain largely excluded from the commanding heights of agricultural finance, land ownership, and policy decision-making. Unlocking their potential is not a matter of charity; it is a matter of economic necessity. Every youth-led processing venture, every women-run agribusiness, every innovation in digital agriculture is a step toward higher productivity, expanded markets, and jobs with dignity.

The prize is not just to feed Africa. It is to build an economy that exports. This is not about reducing imports, but about increasing the dynamism of Africa’s productive economy to achieve net exports of agricultural and agro-processed products. Already, intra-African agricultural trade accounts for about 43 percent of total exports. With the African Continental Free Trade Area, that share can grow further, stabilizing supply chains, adding value at home, and positioning Africa as a competitive exporter to the world.

The private sector is already stepping up across the continent. From satellite-based credit scoring in Kenya, to renewable-powered irrigation in Senegal, to cocoa processing in Ghana, innovators are showing what is possible. What is required now is for governments and donors to match that entrepreneurial energy with policy coherence, catalytic finance, and infrastructure. The task is to take what works in small pockets and scale it into regional corridors and national industries.

This is not an impossible dream. Ethiopia’s agro-industrial parks, Nigeria’s rice milling industry, and Zambia’s seed system reforms show how policy, investment, and innovation can align to shift entire value chains. Imagine this replicated across Africa’s food baskets — from West Africa’s cassava to East Africa’s horticulture to Southern Africa’s livestock. Each could become a hub of processing, trade, and export, fueling jobs not just on farms but in factories, logistics, and services.

The choice before Africa is stark. A business-as-usual path will keep us dependent on global shocks, leaving millions vulnerable to hunger and poverty. But a path of bold reform and coordinated delivery can build resilience, prosperity, and pride. This is not about aid or relief. It is about mobilizing Africa’s greatest economic asset to drive structural transformation.

Dakar must therefore be more than pledges. It must be the moment when leaders, donors, and development partners commit to pipelines of real projects, real financing, and real delivery. Africa cannot afford fragmented gains any longer. The time is for coherence, scale, and systems-level transformation.

Because this is about more than food. It is about Africa’s rightful place in the global economy. It is about our youth and our women leading industries that feed, employ, and export. It is about prosperity that is shared across rural and urban Africa alike.

We owe it to our farmers and our youth. We owe it to our children.

The writer is the Vice President for Technical Expertise at AGRA, an African-led organization focused on putting farmers at the centre of the continent’s growing economy