West African governments, financial institutions and development partners have been urged to build a robust regional financing ecosystem to unlock investment in agriculture, reduce risks and accelerate food systems transformation across the sub region.
The move, stakeholders said, would help bridge the gap between policy ambitions and investment execution by attracting commercial capital into agriculture, strengthening regional trade and creating sustainable opportunities for farmers and agribusinesses.
The call was made at a high level strategic fireside chat on Unlocking West Africa’s Agricultural Investment Future, held on the margins of the ECOWAS Rice Investment Roundtable in Accra on Wednesday.
The event brought together regional institutions, development partners, financial actors and private sector leaders to discuss ways of mobilising investment for agriculture and advancing regional food systems transformation.
AGRA President, Alice Ruhweza, in a statement read on her behalf by the Regional Director West Africa – AGRA, Natasha K Quist, said the region had reached an important stage in its agricultural transformation agenda and must now focus on converting investment opportunities into tangible investments.
She noted that AGRA’s partnership with the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), supported by the United Kingdom’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office through the Africa Food Trade and Resilience Programme, had helped strengthen the ECOWAS Rice Observatory and support the development of National Rice Investment Action Plans in member states.
As AGRA marked its 20th anniversary, she said the organisation was increasingly focused on supporting regional investment ecosystems, innovative financing platforms and strategic alliances capable of accelerating agricultural transformation across Africa.
Ms Ruhweza said the region had established important foundations for its rice agenda through partnerships and investment planning, but the challenge remained how to connect investment opportunities to capital and move from investment readiness to investment execution.
Rice development, she noted, was not only about increasing production but also about improving livelihoods, creating jobs and stimulating economic growth, adding that the ECOWAS Rice Observatory had also helped address information gaps by improving market intelligence, investment visibility, data systems and regional coordination.
ECOWAS Commissioner for Economic Affairs and Agriculture, Dr Kalilou Sylla in his address said inadequate financing remained one of the major obstacles to agricultural development despite the sector’s enormous potential.
He said agriculture was often perceived as a high risk sector due to climate change, price volatility and production uncertainties, making financial institutions reluctant to increase lending.
He stressed that smallholder farmers were the largest investors in Africa’s agricultural sector and called for policies and financing mechanisms that would encourage them to invest more.
Dr Sylla advocated innovative risk reduction mechanisms, including insurance and guarantee schemes, to boost investor confidence.
He also emphasised the need for a secure and integrated regional market, saying effective implementation of ECOWAS protocols on trade, investment and free movement would be critical to attracting investment.
A representative from Ecobank, Adoko Ado, on his part called for stronger collaboration among countries and institutions to move beyond fragmented projects and develop scalable regional investment models.
He said countries facing similar financing gaps should pool resources to support strategic investments capable of serving multiple markets across the region while strengthening cross border trade arrangements and structured off take agreements.
Mr Ado reaffirmed Ecobank’s commitment to working with governments, development partners and private investors to mobilise blended finance through guarantees, grants, concessional funding and commercial lending to support agricultural transformation across West Africa.
BY STEPHANIE BIRIKORANG
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