FAO participation in the Eleventh Session of the Africa Regional Forum on Sustainable Development

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) brought transformative solutions for food systems, gender equality, and sustainable economic growth to the forefront at the Eleventh Session of the Africa Regional Forum on Sustainable Development (ARFSD11).

Held under the theme “Driving job creation and economic growth through sustainable, inclusive, science- and evidence-based solutions for the 2030 Agenda and Agenda 2063,” ARFSD11 gathered regional leaders, academics, civil society organizations, financial institutions and the UN system, to accelerate progress toward the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the African Union’s Agenda 2063.

During the Forum’s high-level session on “Scaling sustainable, inclusive, science-based, evidence-based and data-driven solutions to dramatically increase economic growth, boost job creation and accelerate implementation of the 2030 Agenda and Agenda 2063 ”, Abebe Haile-Gabriel, FAO Assistant Director-General and Regional Representative for Africa, joined as a panelist to explore strategies to boost job creation and economic growth across the continent, in alignment with the SDGs. The session emphasized the need to mobilize finance, strengthen partnerships, improve data systems for evidence-based policymaking and enhance transparency and accountability. Key priorities also included promoting sustainable consumption and circular economy models, particularly in agrifood systems, reforming education and training, supporting youth entrepreneurship, and enabling the transition of informal workers into the formal economy.

Re-Imagining the future of women in food systems

“Women and girls in the agrifood system present enormous opportunities to address all 17 Sustainable Development Goals… They are at the heart of this system—and they can be its soul—if only we commit not to grand gestures, but to small, meaningful actions that are within our reach.” - Agnes Kirabo, Executive Director of the Food Rights Alliance, Uganda, speaking as a panelist at the side event on Re-imagining the future of women in food systems: harnessing science, technology and finance to advance gender equality.

A highlight of FAO’s participation at the Forum was the side event, “Re-imagining the future of women in food systems: harnessing science, technology and finance to advance gender equality”. Co-organized by FAO alongside the Government of Uganda, the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) and the UN Food Systems Coordination Hub, the event delivered a powerful message: the solutions to close the gender gap exist—what is needed is the vision to scale them.

FAO Uganda Representative Antonio Querido opened the session by noting, “At the current pace, it will take 170 years for us to achieve gender equality”—yet, he emphasized, as the event was to show, the solutions are already in hand. Querido stressed that women are essential actors in Africa’s agrifood systems—as producers, traders, processors, and caregivers—whose full potential remains untapped due to structural barriers in access to and control of land, finance, training and technology.

Haile-Gabriel called for a paradigm shift—from viewing women as participants to empowering them as leaders and innovators within agrifood systems. “The answer lies in strategically deploying science, technology and finance intentionally designed for and with women,” he said, referencing labour-saving agronomic practices, digital tools and inclusive finance models adapted to women’s contexts. He also highlighted FAO’s commitments under the Commit to Grow Equality initiative, which includes launching a dedicated gender domain in FAOSTAT to provide critical data on gender equality in agrifood systems, to better inform decision-making to enable adaption.

Director of the FAO Office of SDGs and of the UN Food Systems Coordination Hub, Stefanos Fotiou, cited the 2023 State of Food and Agriculture (SOFA) report, noting that current food systems generate over USD 10 trillion in negative environmental, social, and economic externalities, with women and girls disproportionately affected. This inequality, he argued, is a barrier to both food systems transformation and progress towards a just and democratic society. Fotiou praised the work of the Coalition for action on making food systems work for women and girls, which emerged from the 2021 UN Food Systems Summit for its significant contributions to policy reform, capacity building and knowledge sharing.

Regional Solutions

The first panel discussion, moderated by Querido, focused on “Financing gender equality: unlocking investment to empower women in agrifood systems and address financial independence ”.

• Angela Nakafeero, Commissioner at Uganda’s Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development, outlined Uganda’s progress in legal reforms, highlighting milestones such as the Land Act and the amended Succession Act, which strengthen women’s land rights. She detailed Uganda’s system of gender-responsive budgeting, which legally obliges ministries and agencies to allocate funds for addressing gender inequalities. Nakafeero also stressed the importance of promoting a change in social norms to support women investing in farm productivity and enterprise growth and move away from prioritizing household spending.
• Barbara Kasekende, Head of the Advisory Department at the Uganda Development Bank, discussed efforts to shift women from “survival mode” thinking to a money-making mindset by addressing non-financial barriers, including through personal development and financial literacy training. She also presented innovative financial products such as partial guarantee schemes and extended grace periods, which address women’s difficulties in accessing collateral and meeting short-term return requirements. 
• Peter BenHur Nyeko, Co-founder and Managing Director of Mandulis Energy, showcased solutions integrating agrifood systems and carbon markets which are in operation in Northern Uganda. These projects enable farmers to produce biochar from farm waste such as husks and shells or install solar panels to create and sell credits in voluntary carbon markets. Forward contracts based on these carbon credits are helping to unlock bank financing. 

The second panel, “Empowering women and advancing gender equality through science, technology and innovation”, was moderated by Keiso Matashane-Marite, Chief of Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment at UNECA, who emphasized the need to guide science, technology and innovation to help bridge the gender gap, not widen it. 

• Agnes Kirabo, Executive Director of the Food Rights Alliance, Uganda, introduced the “Farm Planning Model” based on her fieldwork in rural Uganda. This approach prioritizes household food security ahead of commercial farming. Introducing basic tools such as soil testing kits, women were able to increase their productivity by addressing actual soil needs, allowing them to increase yields, sell the surplus and often purchase land. 
• Rama Salla Dieng, Fellow, UK Higher Education Academy, called for a radical rethinking of how research and innovation are developed. She advocated treating women not as research subjects but as collaborators and knowledge holders. She emphasized the need to decolonize research funding and urged recognition of the value of "frugal innovation," which, she argued, is often led by women-led agroecology SMEs, and provides for simple, inexpensive and accessible solutions. 
• Manige Merab, CEO of Superchillo Investments Ltd, shared her experience running a circular agribusiness in mushroom and pumpkin value chains. Merab emphasized the need to address domestic power dynamics, recounting that women’s economic empowerment can trigger domestic tensions unless both men and women are engaged through inclusive training and financial literacy.
  

Closing the session, Ngoni Diop, Director of the UNECA Sub-Regional Office for West Africa, drew connections between the event’s outcomes and ECA’s extensive research on women’s economic empowerment, especially in the agrifood sector. She referenced findings that show how improving women’s access to value chains, markets, land, training, and financing—particularly under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) framework—can transform their economic position and enhance regional development. She concluded by referencing the Kampala Declaration on building resilient and sustainable agrifood systems in Africa, reminding participants that female farmers must be recognized not just as contributors, but as central actors and their role reflected at all levels—national, regional, continental and global.

Women’s Intra-Regional Trade: A Pathway to Economic Growth

In another side event, "Women’s Intra-Regional Trade as a Driver of Job Creation and Economic Growth," FAO in collaboration with regional and international partners, highlighted the critical role of women—who make up the majority of informal traders in Africa—and the barriers they face in trade, including limited access to finance, information, and safe trading environments. Discussions centered on enhancing women's capacity through targeted training, tailored financial products, and inclusive policies, such as those under AfCFTA. Panelists emphasized the importance of advocacy, infrastructure improvements, and formalization pathways that build on existing informal activities. The event underscored that gender-responsive trade is both a strategy for economic growth as well as a moral imperative, requiring joint action from policymakers, development partners and the private sector.

Accelerating the Prevention of Child Labour in Agriculture

FAO also co-led the side event "Accelerate Progress Towards Prevention of Child Labour in Agriculture". Moderated by Querido, the event focused on the urgent need to address child labour as a barrier to sustainable development. The session presented the root causes of child labour in agriculture, which include poverty, lack of access to education and weak enforcement of labour laws, and showcased programmes helping children transition from work into education and safer livelihoods.