Nigeria Takes Decisive Step to Domesticate Kampala Declaration: AGRA, Other Stakeholders Chart Course for CAADP Strategy Action Plan 2026–2035

Following a landmark national consultation in Abuja, Nigeria’s push to turn the African Union’s Kampala Declaration into a practical, home-grown agrifood strategy is gathering momentum.
Late May 2026, government officials, development partners, private-sector players, farmer organisations, regulators and legislators converged in Abuja for the National Stakeholder Consultation on the Nigeria CAADP Strategy Action Plan (2026–2035). The one-day engagement, convened under the technical leadership of the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), marked a critical early milestone in domesticating the continental framework that will guide Africa’s agrifood systems for the next decade.
The Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security (FMAFS), Dr Marcus Olaniyi Ogunbiyi, opened the proceedings by framing the moment as both urgent and strategic. He described the Kampala Declaration as a renewed continental commitment that will drive a fundamental shift toward agro-industrialisation, value addition, climate resilience and sustainable food systems. “The implementation of the CAADP Kampala Declaration comes at a very critical moment in our national development journey,” Ogunbiyi told participants. “Agriculture remains central to economic diversification, employment generation, poverty reduction, industrial growth, and national stability.”
As Africa’s largest economy and one of its major agricultural producers, Nigeria has both the responsibility and the opportunity to translate continental aspirations into practical national strategies that deliver measurable results for farmers and citizens, he stressed. The Permanent Secretary pointed to existing reforms—including the Special Agro-Industrial Processing Zones (SAPZ), the National Agricultural Development Fund (NADF) and strengthened export certification systems—as building blocks for the new Strategy Action Plan. He called for a process that is inclusive, evidence-based and firmly results-oriented.
In his remarks to reaffirm the importance of partnership, Dr. Rufus Idris, Country Director AGRA Nigeria, aligned the consultation within the longer arc of CAADP. “We’re clearly here today to have an engagement with other stakeholders as we try to advance the Nigeria CAADP Strategy Action Plan, which is actually domesticating the Kampala Declaration,” he said. “AGRA has been active in the process since Maputo to Malabo and to the Kampala Declaration. Today is just for us to ensure that we further support the Nigerian government as one of the countries that have advanced in domesticating the Kampala Declaration.”
Idris noted that Nigeria’s rapid progress is evidence of serious political will. AGRA, he emphasised, is fully committed in supporting the technical community, national planning processes and the Action Plan itself. He highlighted the importance of broad ownership involving government, private-sector actors, farmer groups, regulators and legislators, many of whom already convene retreats to strengthen parliamentary oversight of the country’s CAADP commitments. “We’re happy about this activity,” he said. “We’re glad that the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security is prioritising this as well, and the Nigerian government is putting high value on domesticating the Kampala Declaration in Nigeria, starting with developing a very strong Strategy Action Plan for the country.”
Adopted by African leaders in January 2025 and effective from 1 January 2026, the Kampala Declaration builds on two decades of CAADP experience. It moves the agenda from a narrower agriculture-led growth focus to a comprehensive agrifood systems approach. Continental targets include raising agrifood output, cutting post-harvest losses by 50 per cent, tripling intra-African trade in agrifood products and inputs, mobilising $100 billion in public and private investment, and allocating at least 10 per cent of public expenditure to agrifood systems—while advancing inclusivity, nutrition and resilience.

IFPRI Country Programme Leader Dr Oliver Kirui reaffirmed the institute’s commitment to supporting the Ministry and national stakeholders in developing the Strategy Action Plan. Representatives of the African Development Bank, World Bank, FAO and IFAD were also present, signaling coordinated partner support.
The consultation has set a clear foundation for the work that lies ahead. By bringing together the full range of stakeholders early in the process, Nigeria has signaled its intention to own the domestication of the Kampala Declaration rather than simply adopt it. The coming weeks and months will test the ability of government and partners to convert the consensus reached in Abuja into a coherent, bankable and accountable Strategy Action Plan capable of guiding investments and reforms through 2035.

For AGRA and other partners, the message from the consultation remains encouraging: Nigeria is taking the Kampala commitments seriously, and the partnership ecosystem is ready to walk the journey with the government. The real measure of success will be whether that shared resolve translates into sustained political will, timely financing, strong federal–state coordination and tangible improvements in the lives of the farmers, processors, traders and consumers who form the backbone of Nigeria’s agrifood system.