Cultivate Africa’s Future
Cultivating Africa’s Future Fund Why focus on smallholder agriculture and gender equality?
Investing in research that improves small-scale agriculture is an especially effective way to meet the food security needs of vulnerable populations – especially women and children – while building economic livelihoods. Recent studies estimate that over 475 million family farms globally, which constitute 98% of all farms, produce more than half of the world’s food. Women constitute most farmers in these family farms; and in Eastern and Southern Africa, they constitute up to 60% of the agricultural labour force. Rural women assume critical roles in household and community food and nutritional security, although their role is generally undervalued and constrained by limitations on their access to resources, services, and labour market opportunities. Also, the region has a growing population of educated but unemployed youth who could transform the agriculture sector through profitable agripreneurship. Research has substantial potential to improve the food security situation by identifying ways in which effective interventions can be undertaken.
Who we are Cultivate Africa’s Future Fund (CultiAF) is a partnership between the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) and the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR) that leverages the strengths and resources of each organization to improve overall food and nutrition security across Eastern and Southern Africa. The partnership represents a CA$ 35 million (AU$ 37 million) investment between 2013 and 2023. The main objective of CultiAF is to improve food and nutrition security in Eastern and Southern Africa by funding applied research to develop and scale-up sustainable, climate resilient and gender responsive innovations for smallholder producers. The portfolio
©FRANCIS NGUMBA
Agriculture is central to fostering economic growth, reducing poverty, and improving food security in Eastern and Southern African regions. More than 70% of the rural population depends on agriculture for their livelihoods, and poor performance in the agriculture sector has led to constrained regional economic growth. Food insecurity is a significant challenge for most countries in the region, which are especially vulnerable to economic and climate-related shocks that affect food production and distribution systems.
of CultiAF research projects cuts across four research themes: increasing productivity and reducing postharvest losses; linking agriculture, nutrition and human health; gender equality; and climate change and agricultural water management. These projects are being implemented by research teams from Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe. CultiAF emphasizes the need for research projects to deliver on gender equality outcomes by integrating gender transformative approaches that address underlying social and gender barriers. The evidence generated will be scaled-up for wider impact using innovative business models that successfully include women and youth in technology development, value chains, entrepreneurship, and capacity building with the intent to increase their strategic leadership and influence over agriculture and food systems.
What we do The main objective is to improve food and nutrition security in Eastern and Southern Africa by funding applied research in agricultural development to: •
Develop sustainable, climate-resilient, and gender responsive innovations for smallholder farmers;
•
Develop and implement business models that empower women and youth to scale-out innovations that bring equitable benefits to smallholder farmers and consumers;
•
Use research results to inform food security, nutrition, climate change and water policies and programs.