Kenya on Thursday called for more inclusive and context-sensitive financing of the agriculture system in Africa to boost food production amid climate change effects.
Prime Cabinet Secretary and Secretary for Foreign and Diaspora Affairs, Musalia Mudavadi, said the current financing architecture remains misaligned with the vast potential of the agriculture sector.
"We must shift from reactive, transactional approaches to bold, transformational ones that unlock land, labour, and local knowledge as part of a unified strategy for sustainable growth," Mudavadi said at the Financing Agri-Food Systems Sustainably summit in Kenya's capital Nairobi.
He observed that Africa should explore green bonds for climate-smart agriculture, diaspora bonds for rural infrastructure, Islamic finance for faith-aligned investments, and blockchain-enabled traceability to improve creditworthiness.
Mudavadi called for coordination among ministries, development partners, and private sector actors to align resources with national and regional priorities.
The Kenyan official asked the continent to support the African Continental Free Trade Area, adding that it is a strategic lever that provides a framework to harmonize standards, facilitate cross-border finance, and unlock regional agricultural corridors.
According to Mudavadi, Kenya is not simply treating agriculture as a sector but as a platform for shared prosperity.
The country is "de-risking rural finance through credit guarantee schemes, scaling e-voucher systems to reach remote farmers, and co-investing in value-addition hubs across maize, dairy, horticulture, and fisheries," he added.
