国际英语新闻:22nd AU summit ends with commitment of agricultural transformation, regional peace

ADDIS ABABA, Jan. 31 (Xinhua) -- The 22nd African Union (AU) Summit concluded at AU's headquarters in Ethiopia's capital city of Addis Ababa on Saturday, with commitment of transforming agriculture and restoring regional peace.

"The transformation of agriculture holds the key to the success of our collective efforts to realize our vision," said Hailemariam Dessalegnthe, former Chairperson of the AU while addressing the opening ceremony of the summit themed "Agriculture and Food Security".

The former chairperson also said progress has been made over the past decade in Africa's agriculture and it's time to renew the commitment to do more in the sector.

FOCUS ON AGRICULTURAL TRANSFORMATION

We need to improve human resources for agricultural infrastructure and research that would contribute to boost productivity on the African continent, said Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, Chairperson of the AU Commission at the summit.

During the summit, agricultural development and transformation in Africa has been high on the agenda

Zuma also noted that Africa has yet to exploit its arable land while other continents have almost exhausted their arable lands. "The agriculture sector should be an engine for industrialization on the continent," she added.

Africa needs to transform its agriculture in order to improve agricultural development and food security, said Tumusiime Rhoda Peace, Commissioner for Rural Economy and Agriculture at the AU Commission.

However, due to inadequate funding, poor rural infrastructure and neglected agricultural research, the continent experiences some challenges in fully exploiting its potential to increase food and agricultural production.

Our countries should combine efforts in order to increase cultivated areas and improve productivity through the modernization of rural infrastructure, the promotion of agricultural research and popularization of the most efficient farming techniques, said Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, the newly- elected chairperson of AU, who is also the president of Mauritania.

IMPLEMENTATION OF CAADP

Another theme for this year's AU summit is to mark the tenth anniversary of the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Program (CAADP).

In 2003, leaders of AU member states signed the CAADP under the auspices of the AU and the New Partnership for Africa's Development, with hopes of developing Africa's agriculture and eradicating hunger.

CAADP is a pan-African framework for revitalizing agriculture, food security and nutrition, which aims to assist African countries to reach a higher path of economic growth through agriculture-led development.

Under this comprehensive program, African governments have made a commitment to allocate at least 10 percent of their national budgets to the agricultural sector each year.

As of the end of 2013, over 20 African countries have signed the CAADP, which also brings hope to the future agricultural development.

Member states must fully implement the CAADP to unlock agricultural growth in Africa, said Maurice Lorka, senior CAADP adviser.

Africa also needs to attract more investment in order to boost its agricultural transformation and come up with feasible plans to eradicate hunger, he added.