Kampala - African governments should increase investment in sustainable agriculture in the face of extreme climate change, Angola's Environment Minister Ana Paula de Carvalho said Friday in Kampala, Uganda.
The Angolan minister made the statement to the press on the sidelines of the joint ministerial meeting between the heads of foreign affairs and agriculture at the African Union Extraordinary Summit on the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Program (CAADP), which entered its second day of work today.
According to the Angolan minister, the sustained commitment to the agricultural sector is the result of the need to respond to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and other situations on the continent, and that it is important to be "aligned" with the environmental component and to think in the long term.
The minister emphasized that Angola has a National Strategy for Climate Action, a legal instrument that cuts across all ministerial departments.
"It is important that we have this strong commitment to agriculture, but always hand in hand with the environmental component. And when we talk about sustainability, it's not just about seeing today or now, it's about thinking now, but also thinking long term," said the Minister.
The Extraordinary Summit on CAADP is a continental initiative of the African Union's Agenda 2063, which aims to increase agricultural productivity.
It also aims to increase public investment in the sector and stimulate economic growth to help African countries eradicate hunger and reduce poverty.
Launched in 2003 with the Maputo Declaration and reaffirmed in 2014 with the Malabo Declaration in Equatorial Guinea, CAADP focuses on improving food and nutrition security and increasing incomes in the continent's agricultural economies.
The event will conclude on Saturday with the Conference of Heads of State and Government, which will adopt the Kampala Declaration on building resilient and sustainable agri-food systems in Africa. HM/VC/DAN/AMP
