The International Fund for Agricultural Development and AKADEMIYA2063 partner to promote agrifood systems transformation across Africa

Kigali, 5 September 2024 – The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and AKADEMIYA2063 have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to collaborate on promoting evidence-based policymaking, implementation, monitoring and evaluation, applied to Africa's agrifood system transformation and continental agendas such as the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme. Formalized during a ceremony held on the sidelines of the Africa Food Systems (AFS) Forum in Kigali today, the agreement will provide a framework for strengthening technical and institutional capacities, and in particular the data and analytical capacities of African experts.

"AKADEMIYA2063 is pleased to join forces with IFAD to deploy our collective expertise toward increasing food security, improving nutrition, and tackling the effects of climate change across Africa," said Ousmane Badiane, Executive Chairperson at AKADEMIYA2063. "Combining robust data and analytics with IFAD's strong focus on increasing productivity capacities of rural people is a powerful recipe for success in improving livelihoods across Africa," he added.

Under the agreement, IFAD and AKADEMIYA2063 will set up mechanisms to contribute to impact assessments of IFAD-funded projects to improve project design and implementation while capitalizing on the key drivers of agrifood systems and rural transformation.

"Through this groundbreaking partnership with AKADEMIYA2063, IFAD will support cutting-edge African research and engage in programmatic intervention for impact. This research will provide IFAD and the development community at large with concrete evidence and knowledge on what works in the African context for their rural development investments," said Donal Brown, IFAD Associate Vice-President, Programme Management Department.

Following the MoU signing, the parties held a bilateral discussion on the implementation of the MoU and on the organization and participation in joint events, such as conferences, policy dialogues, symposia, and workshops, to promote the initiative and share data and evidence to optimize the impact of development programmes and contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals for rural people in Africa.

IFAD's regional offices for East and Southern Africa and West and Central Africa will work closely with AKADEMIYA2063 to operationalize the MoU.

Media contact:

• Romuald Ngomssi, Regional communications officer, [email protected] Tel: +225 0718736423
• Layih Butake, Director, Communication and Outreach, AKADEMIYA2063 [email protected]

About AKADEMIYA2063

AKADEMIYA2063 is a pan-African non-profit research organization with headquarters in Kigali, Rwanda and a regional office in Dakar, Senegal. Inspired by the ambitions of the African Union's Agenda 2063 and grounded in the recognition of the central importance of strong knowledge and evidence-based systems, the vision of AKADEMIYA2063 is an Africa with the expertise we need for the Africa we want. This expertise must be responsive to the continent's needs for data and analysis to ensure high-quality policy design and execution. AKADEMIYA2063's overall mission is to create, across Africa, state-of-the-art technical capacities to support the efforts by the Member States of the African Union to achieve the key goals of Agenda 2063 of transforming national economies to boost economic growth and prosperity. For more information, visit www.akademiya2063.org

Press Release No.: IFAD/70/2024

About IFAD

IFAD is an international financial institution and a United Nations specialized agency. Based in Rome – the United Nations food and agriculture hub – IFAD invests in rural people, empowering them to reduce poverty, increase food security, improve nutrition and strengthen resilience. Since 1978, we have provided more than US$24 billion in grants and low-interest loans to fund projects in developing countries.

A wide range of photographs of IFAD’s work in rural communities are available for download from its Image Bank.