AfDB calls for more investment in agriculture

African Development Bank Group (AfDB) President Donald Kaberuka has reiterated the need for reforms in agriculture and emphasis on basic education as pillars for economic transformation in Africa.Kaberuka was speaking at a public lecture dubbed ‘from economic growth to economic transformation,’ organised by the Bank of Uganda yesterday in Kampala. “African governments spend much less on agricultural research, development and outreach than their counterparts in Asia and Latin America,” he said. “It is also significant that only 4% of food crops in Africa are irrigated compared to 30% in Asia.”He gave an example of China where agricultural reforms provided a foundation for an export growth process, enabling it become the largest exporter of manufactured goods in two decades. The rural surpluses, Kaberuka added, were the basis for industrialization in China while the government expanded investment in rural infrastructure.“There is broad agreement that the best way to end the transmission of poverty from one generation to the other is quality education to the children of the poor,” he said.Bank of Uganda Deputy Governor Louis Kasekende said that African countries will achieve sustainable economic transformation if only they ensure growth that is broadly shared.Participants concurred that the quality of Africa’s growth over the past ten years has not been inclusive, with too few jobs created especially for the young people in the booming economies.With reference to different countries in Asia, discussants highlighted that international aid was a supplement and not a replacement of national effort as it is the case with many African countries.They observed that aid was not lost to corruption, but instead brought in good analytical methods for economic development.

National

AfDB calls for more investment in agriculture