•Mucavi said there was a need for continental states to formulate supportive frameworks that advocate for innovative approaches to improving food systems.
•She said the emerging technologies in food systems can be leveraged to promote more sustainable production processes for urban dwellers.
Image: FAITH MATETE
African countries have been called upon to integrate into their development agenda policies to promote sustainable urban food production systems.
FAO representative to Kenya Carla Mucavi said the rapidly growing urbanisation in Africa has pressured food systems hence the need for adoption of collaborative interventions through agricultural innovations.
Mucavi said there was a need for states to formulate supportive frameworks that advocate for innovative approaches to improving food and nutrition systems in the intermediary cities.
Speaking during a session dubbed Feeding Intermediary Cities, Mucavi said the emerging technologies in food systems can be leveraged to promote more sustainable production processes for urban dwellers.
“Given the challenges intermediary cities in Africa face with the upsurge in population, it is necessary for its countries to redefine their policies towards achieving sustainable food systems,” she said.
Mucavi asked the local governments in the continent to integrate human food systems into their policies, programmes and capacity development and offer financial support to mitigate the urban food system issues.
“The chance of transforming human food systems requires collective actions by various partners,” she said.
The FAO representative said her organisation is undertaking various agricultural projects in selected intermediary cities aimed at improving rural human linkages within the food systems.
“Food system issues require horizontal coordination across the stakeholders. It is important that the voices of local and international players are heard,” she said.
Kiambu Governor James Nyoro urged agricultural stakeholders to practically get involved in providing practical solutions to challenges related to urban food systems transformation.
Nyoro said there was a need for the local governments to pump in more resources towards stimulating peri-urban and urban agriculture, to grow the food chain.
He said more investments should be put into modern farming methods such as the use of greenhouses to promote peri-urban agriculture.
“We have to get ways for the urban population accessing food in an affordable way and ensuring we have some production in the urban centres and peri-urban,” he said.
Africa will continue to have the fastest urban growth in the world.
The level of urbanisation in Africa and at the global level is increasing and 70 per cent of food is consumed by urban inhabitants, food systems transformation is increasingly becoming an issue.
The role of cities and local governments in achieving sustainable food systems transformation has been prioritised during the UN food systems summit convened by the UN secretary general in September 2011.
The Urban food systems are debated at the Africities Summit and the conclusion and recommendations are presented in its main political session, to trigger commitment and action to transform them.
Edited by Kiilu Damaris