Nairobi, Dec 16 (IANS): Seamless intra-African trade in cereals, including maize, rice, wheat and legumes, holds the key to tackling the food security crisis in Africa besides boosting rural incomes, officials said Monday at a forum in the Kenyan capital of Nairobi.
The two-day public-private dialogue forum was convened by the Eastern African Grain Council (EAGC), an industry lobby, and the Alliance for Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA), an African-led institution aimed at promoting smallholder farming across Africa.
Senior policymakers, industry executives, donors and researchers are attending the forum to promote cross-border trade in grains by eliminating tariff barriers, improving quality and reducing transportation costs.
Paul Ronoh, principal secretary in Kenya's Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development, said that increasing the volume of grains traded across the borders could be the solution to the hunger and malnutrition crisis affecting the region due to climate change, shrinking arable land, crop pests and diseases.
"We need to shape policies that facilitate instead of hindering cross-border trade in grains to address food security, boost income for our smallholder farmers who are mainly women and youth," Ronoh said, Xinhua news agency reported.
Ronoh said the eastern African region is trading nearly two million metric tonnes of grains annually even as governments intensify dialogue to address bottlenecks, including policy inconsistencies, punitive tariffs, and costly logistics such as transport and storage.
Gerald Masila, executive director of the EAGC, stressed that eliminating regulatory hiccups is key to facilitating private sector participation in regional grain trade that promises food and nutritional security, job creation and rural development.
According to Masila, harmonizing tax and foreign exchange regimes, providing subsidies for smallholder farmers and improving post-harvest storage will enhance cross-border trade in cereals, while helping countries bridge deficits arising from erratic weather patterns.
In addition, Masila urged countries in the region to establish vibrant commodity exchange platforms and improve access to credit for small-scale traders to sustain the flow of grains across borders.
Nega Wubeneh, AGRA's head of markets and trades, said the private sector should be at the helm of driving cross-border trade in grains as governments establish guardrails to ensure fair competition and food safety.
Providence Mavubi, director of industry and agriculture at the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa, a regional bloc, said that to increase the volume of grains traded across borders, governments should simplify licensing for traders, ensure farmers have access to quality seeds and manure, and invest in innovations to combat food waste.