IDRC at the 2026 Africa Food Systems Forum
From August 31 to September 4, IDRC staff, grantees and research partners will be participating in the Africa Food Systems Forum (AFSF).
As the world's premier forum for African agriculture and food systems, AFSF's aim is to inform, influence and catalyse the transition to sustainable, resilient, healthy and inclusive food systems across the continent. Held this year at the Kigali Convention Centre in Kigali, Rwanda, the forum will host important conversations that address some of the most complex challenges facing Africa's food systems today.
Under this year's theme "Investing in Agri-Food Systems", sessions will cover diverse topics including mobilising finance, improving dietary quality, climate resilience, youth and digital innovation for food systems transformation, women's leadership, trade, markets and value chains and more.
Learn more about our participation in the forum below.
AFSF events hosted and co-hosted by IDRC, our grantees and our partners
Note: All session times are listed in South Africa Standard Time (SAST). A full schedule of sessions and session descriptions can be found on the AFSF website.
PABRA@30 Celebration
Multiple events
To kick off the forum, IDRC will be celebrating the legacy of the Pan-Africa Bean Research Alliance (PABRA), a partnership involving the Alliance of Bioversity and CIAT, national agricultural research systems and value chain actors that works to improve bean production, commercialization and consumption. Beans are essential to food security and livelihoods across Africa — operating through a network of more than 934 partners in 31 countries, PABRA has developed and scaled innovations that have strengthened food security and livelihoods across sub-Saharan Africa. Hosted by PABRA, Alliance of Bioversity and CIAT, Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Resources and the Rwanda Agricultural Board, these celebration events will recognize the work that has taken place over the past three decades, supporting more than 43.5 million farmers.
Towards Inclusive and Gender-Responsive Food Systems (Special partners dialogue)
16:30 – 18:00
Building on the International Year of the Woman Farmer, this discussion aims to mobilize political commitments, partnerships and investments in support of gender equality, women’s empowerment and the importance of equitable agrifood systems. Discussions will explore how to galvanize action to translate the commitments of the Kampala Declaration into coordinated investments and actions that expand economic opportunities for women while accelerating Africa's agrifood systems transformation. Hosted by African Women in Agricultural Research and Development (AWARD).
Powering Inclusive Food Systems (Side event)
8:00 - 9:30
Gender Transformative Approaches (GTAs) remain insufficiently integrated into food systems investments in Africa. In commemoration of the International Year of the Woman Famer, this session provides a critical platform to push for policy reforms that break down the systemic barriers and streamline these GTAs. Hosted by Women in Food Systems Thematic Platform, AWARD, Commonwealth Agricultural Bureaux International (CABI), Alliance for Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) and IDRC.
Africa's Food Systems in 2046: Building the Architecture for Sovereign, Competitive and Inclusive Transformation (Roundtable)
10:00 – 12:00
A discussion on what it will take for African food systems to become the foundation of industrialisation, jobs, sovereignty and regional trade by 2046.
Women in Food Systems: Cultivating Equality, Harvesting Growth (Plenary session)
13:30 – 15:30
This session will explore how reaching equality is at the advantage of all food system actors, and that achieving it must come through transformational actions addressing harmful gender norms, fostering inclusive decision-making and enabling equitable access to resources. With participation from the National University of Science and Technology (NUST), AWARD, East African Legislative Assembly, African Development Bank (AfDB), International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), FAO and IDRC.
Beyond Recognition: Investing in Women as Food Systems Leaders
7:30 – 9:00
The session will spotlight practical models, lived experiences and solutions led by women across African food systems. Women farmers, agripreneurs, processors, researchers, innovators and ecosystem actors will share what is working, what is changing and what support is needed to scale. The session will explore how finance, research, enterprise support, market linkages and policy can better enable women to lead and benefit from food systems transformation.
Women Transforming Africa’s Food Systems (Breakthrough event)
7:30 – 9:00
The event is a solutions-focused session exploring what is already working for women across African food systems and how these approaches can be scaled in a changing financing and development landscape. Hosted by Africa Enterprise Challenge Fund (AECF), AWARD, FAO and IDRC.
Investing in Africa's Resilient Food Systems: Advancing Sustainable Production Through Regenerative Agriculture
8:00 – 9:30
This side event will explore regenerative agriculture as a scalable and commercially viable pathway for resilient agrifood systems in Africa. Hosted by Sustainable Production Thematic Platform, SNV Netherlands Development Organisation, CGIAR, IKEA Foundation.
These sessions will build on conversations offered throughout the summer via a series of webinars, where IDRC and additional AFSF partners hosted virtual events that introduced many of the themes that will be further explored in Kigali.
Comparta esta página