Supporting Trade Systems in the African Agricultural Sector
The FCI4Africa initiative is dedicated to bolstering resilient, equitable, and nutritious food systems across Africa. The primary focus areas include:
- Promoting open and equitable trade practices.
- Harmonising non-tariff measures.
- Advancing digital transformation of food systems.
Furthermore, the project is committed to fostering knowledge growth and dissemination via open-access scientific resources and cutting-edge digital platforms.
What is
Food Convergence Innovation (FCI)?
A transformative approach that integrates AI, consumer insights, and market strategies to enhance performance and wealth of the agri-food sector. FCI tackles complex challenges such as malnutrition, unemployment, and poverty, recognising their deep interconnections. This concept drives real impact through multidisciplinary collaboration, bringing together technology, social sciences and policy.
Challenges
The African agricultural sector faces many challenges on its journey towards sustainability and equity.
To improve food systems across the continent, it is essential to recognise and tackle the key barriers to progress.
FCI4Africa has identified the following major challenges:
Lack of sustainability, fairness, and justness in the agri-food sector.
Difficulties in complying with new EU legislation and trade policies.
High certification costs creating barriers for African small-scale farmers.
Fragmentation of intra-African agricultural trade.
Limited transparency and data obstructing the integration of the informal sector.
Inconsistency of non-tariff measures across regions.