| World Bank IMF and Dev Agencies |    1253 VIEWS  |
| World Bank IMF and Dev Agencies | |
| 1253 VIEWS | |
 | |
| PROSHARE | |
| PROSHARE | |
Monday, June 08, 2020 / 11:14 PM / By AfDB /
Header Image Credit: @WFP_SouthSudan
The African Development Bank has unveiled a strategic
roadmap of projects and programmes to assist African countries in tackling the
nutrition and food security aspects of the COVID-19 crisis through a raft of
immediate and longer-term measures.
The Feed Africa Response to COVID-19 (FAREC) paves the
way for a comprehensive intervention to build resilience, sustainability and
regional self-sufficiency in Africa's food systems and help farmers cope with
coronavirus-related disruptions to the agricultural value chain.
"The Bank's response to support the agriculture sector
lays out specific measures aimed at addressing challenges faced by African
countries across all aspects of the agriculture sector. Africa cannot afford a
food crisis in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic," said Dr. Jennifer Blanke,
the Bank's Vice President for Agriculture, Human and Social Development.
A report released alongside the roadmap recommends
immediate, short- and medium-term solutions for the agriculture sector
including; support of food delivery for the most vulnerable; stabilization of
food prices; optimization of food processing; extension support services, and
provision of key agricultural inputs through smart subsidies.
According to the report, the Bank will prioritize
policy support to enhance movement of inputs and food, to establish food
security task forces in countries, and to strengthen the capacity of regional
organisations to monitor multi-country initiatives.
The pandemic has worsened volatility in the price of
food staples and complicated food system actors' investment decision-making.
The confluence of impacts risks deepening food insecurity and malnutrition.
According to the World Food Programme, over 40 million West Africans face food
shortages in the coming months.
FAREC forms one part of the Bank's COVID-19 Response
Facility (CRF) of up to $10 billion. The CRF is the Bank's primary channel to
deploy financial and technical measures to cushion African economies and
livelihoods against the health, social and economic impacts of the pandemic.
In May, the Bank's African Development Institute, its
focal point for capacity development, hosted a seminar that examined the
pandemic's impacts on Africa's agri-food systems and offered policy
recommendations to make them more resilient and efficient.
"Ensuring food security for Africans in all situations
is at the core of the Bank's Feed Africa Strategy. Our institution will
coordinate its efforts with different stakeholders across the continent to
effectively answer the needs of regional member countries," said Dr. Martin
Fregene, Director of the Bank's Agriculture and Agro-industry Department.
Related News
Signup with Facebook
Signup with Twitter
