The African Union (AU) says a $15 billion private sector investment is required to guarantee an increase in local manufacturing of mineral fertilizers in Africa.
This was disclosed by the union in a statement on its website dated May 6, 2024.
The bloc explained that regional cooperation in fertilizer policy, research, and development as well as investment pooling for production capacity will facilitate cross-border trade in Africa.
AU plans to increase local production of mineral fertilizers by 2033.
The statement partly read,
Recall that in a bid to reverse the poor productivity of the African soils, the Heads of States and Governments of the AU endorsed the Abuja Declaration on Fertilizer for the Africa Green Revolution in June 2006.
The AU decried Africa’s unusual reliance on global market, noting that the continent can be self-reliant if the needed cooperation crystalizes.
It maintained there is a dire need to expand the last-mile delivery system in Africa, thereby shortening the distances that African farmers travel to access fertilizer and other critical farm inputs.
However, the union advised stakeholders to identify local organic sources that can be leveraged locally to manufacture and blend fertilizers so as to decrease overdependence on global markets while shortening the supply chain.
It added,