By Abdallah el-Kurebe
A high level individuals from across Africa, led by former Nigerian President, Olusegun Obasanjo yesterday in Accra, Ghana launched a prestigious new award called the Africa Food Prize (AFP).
A statement issued by the president of Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA), Dr. Agnes Kalibata revealed that the award, which is worth $100,000 would recognize outstanding individuals and institutions that were contributing to the development of farming in Africa.
According to her, “The US $100,000 accolade will recognize outstanding individuals and institutions that are changing the reality of farming in Africa from a struggle to survive to a business that thrives. Winners will be selected by a panel of independent and distinguished leaders in African agriculture chaired by President H.E Obasanjo.”
The statement added that AFP would focus on bold initiatives as well as technical innovations that could shared across the continent.
“The Africa Food Prize will shine a bright spotlight on bold initiatives and technical innovations that can be replicated across the continent to help millions of smallholder farmers deliver a new era of sustainable food security and economic opportunity. It’s a successor of the Yara Prize, which was first established by Yara International ASA in 2005,” Kalibata stated.
The award, which is being funded by AGRA and Yara, she added, “builds on the values and principles of the Yara Prize by giving the most prestigious award in African agriculture a distinct African identity and African ownership.”
Kalibata encouraged Africans to embrace the opportunity to honor the best and brightest in African agriculture “by nominating candidates for the Africa Food Prize who are dedicated to putting smallholder farmers at the center of Africa’s growing economies.”
