Agriculture—and Farmers—Should Be at the Heart of Transforming Africa's Economy, Leading Voices Agree

Africa’s agricultural productivity has grown in recent decades, but more progress needs to be made to improve the livelihoods of smallholder farmers and create lasting economic growth, experts agreed at the TIME Impact Dinner on Wednesday Sep. 2 in Kigali, Rwanda. Moderated by TIME senior correspondent Justin Worland, leaders in agriculture, climate, and development discussed the progress that has been made in growing Africa’s agricultural productivity and the work that still remains. A report released this week from AGRA, an African-led institution focused on scaling agricultural innovations for smallholder farmers and the event sponsor, shows that Africa’s farm output has roughly doubled in the last 20 years. Yet despite meaningful investments, not enough has been done to ensure that gains are not siloed, says Ismahane Elouafi, executive managing director of CGIAR, the world's largest, publicly-funded agrifood research network. “We have made increases in productivity, but not enough,” she says, noting that while a farmer might have healthy soil, they could still lack water or strong irrigation systems. “So basically, we have done it in piecemeal, but not as a food system as a who...