Crops

The Prime Minister of Mozambique, Benvinda Levi speaking during the International Women's Day celebrations in Maputo Mozambique. (Image credit: AGRA)

Across sub-Saharan Africa, women are not waiting on the sidelines of the farming revolution. They are in the thick of it, tilling the soil, leading cooperatives, and building agribusinesses that feed families and fortify economies.

Women make up nearly half of the continent's agrifood workforce, with more than three quarters of employed women working within these systems in some capacity. Yet despite doing so much of the heavy lifting, structural obstacles continue to block their path to finance, land, markets, and the tools they need to truly thrive.

To mark International Women's Day 2026, AGRA brought this conversation front and centre. Through its VALUE4HER initiative, the organisation convened women agripreneurs, policymakers, and development partners at the Joaquim Chissano International Centre in Maputo, Mozambique. The event served a dual purpose: honouring the women quietly transforming African agriculture, and officially opening applications for the 2026 VALUE4HER Women Agripreneurs of the Year Awards, known as WAYA.

The gathering was anchored by the theme "Give Agency to Gain Growth," a rallying call that spoke directly to what many women working in agrifood know all too well. The numbers make a compelling case for change. According to the Food and Agriculture Organisation, if women farmers had the same access to productive resources as men, their yields could increase by 20 to 30 per cent, potentially cutting global hunger by up to 17 per cent.

Alice Ruhweza,AGRA's President, said, "Women are not just participants in Africa's agrifood systems — they are innovators, entrepreneurs, and leaders driving transformation across the value chain. Investing in women's agency, leadership, and access to opportunities unlocks growth not only for women-led businesses, but for Africa's food systems and economies."

Maria Benvinda Levy, Mozambique's Prime Minister, said, "The National Program for the Eradication of Poverty places the improvement of people's living conditions at the centre of our national agenda. It prioritises support for the most vulnerable, reduces social inequalities, and advances inclusive development across Mozambique. Women agripreneurs are central to this transformation, driving productivity, strengthening food systems, and expanding opportunity in our communities."

The WAYA Awards, launched in 2021, have grown into one of Africa's most respected platforms for recognising excellence in women-led agribusiness. Winners receive grants of up to USD 300,000 to scale their work. This year's awards will be presented in September at the Africa Food Systems Forum in Kigali, Rwanda. Applications close 8th May 2026, and are open to women-led agribusinesses across the continent.

Last year drew nearly 2,000 applicants from countries including Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana, Uganda, Tanzania, and beyond. Their stories told of innovation in ag-tech, value addition, sustainable farming, and grassroots community leadership. This year promises to be no different.

African Development Bank's US$16.6mn bet on smarter farming.

Across Africa, millions of farmers are battling unpredictable weather, shrinking harvests, and ageing farming methods that simply cannot keep pace with the continent's growing food demands.

A new funding agreement is looking to change that, and quickly.

The African Development Bank Group and the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) have signed a US$16.61mn grant agreement to kick off the third phase of the Technologies for African Agricultural Transformation Programme, better known as TAAT-III. The signing took place on 18th February 2026 in Abuja, and it marks a fresh chapter in one of Africa's most consequential agricultural programmes.

Since TAAT first launched in 2018, the results have been hard to argue with. The programme has reached close to 25 million farmers, expanded climate-resilient practices across more than 35 million hectares, pushed crop yields up by as much as 69 per cent, and generated over US$4bn in additional agricultural value. Countries such as Sudan, Ethiopia, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and Nigeria have all recorded measurable improvements in staple crop output.

Nigeria's experience under the Wheat Compact tells the story well. Farmers who adopted improved heat-tolerant seed varieties watched their yields more than double, rising from 1.7 tonnes per hectare to 3.5 tonnes per hectare.

Abdul Kamara, Director General of the Bank Group's Nigeria Country Department, said, "TAAT-III underscores the Bank's commitment to ensuring that proven, climate-resilient agricultural technologies reach farmers faster and at scale. This phase strengthens the systems that deliver innovation, helping countries boost productivity, enhance resilience, and align agricultural transformation efforts with the Bank's four new areas of emphasis, dubbed the Four Cardinal Points."

IITA's Director General, Simeon Ehui, added, "TAAT-III allows us to deepen the delivery of science-based solutions that improve farmers' yields and livelihoods. Working with the Bank and our partners, we are scaling technologies that make Africa's food systems more resilient and competitive."

Funded through the African Development Fund, TAAT-III aims to reach an additional 14 million farmers across 37 low-income countries, embedding sustainable, private sector-driven models into long-term national farming strategies.

Africa's trade revolution:AfCFTA and AGRA join forces to put farmers first.

Africa's ambition to feed itself and trade its way to prosperity took a meaningful step forward on 14th February, when two of the continent's most influential institutions made their collaboration official.

On the sidelines of the 39th African Union Summit, the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Secretariat and AGRA signed a Memorandum of Understanding, setting the stage for a deeper, more purposeful working relationship. The agreement signals a deliberate shift from paperwork to practice, placing agriculture at the heart of Africa's continental trade ambitions.

With 50 countries now having ratified the AfCFTA Agreement, the conversation is no longer about whether Africa will trade more freely. It is about how. And for millions of smallholder farmers, agribusinesses, and food processors across the continent, the answer to that question matters enormously.

H.E. Wamkele Mene, Secretary-General of the AfCFTA Secretariat, said, "The AfCFTA offers Africa a historic opportunity to shift from exporting raw commodities to building regional value chains that create jobs, raise farmer incomes and strengthen food security.Our partnership with AGRA is about moving from ambition to execution, ensuring that agricultural trade delivers tangible benefits for producers, processors and consumers across the continent."

The partnership will be guided by the AfCFTA Agri-Trade Action Plan, a practical framework targeting the reduction of non-tariff barriers, stronger trade facilitation, investment in regional value chains, and greater emphasis on value addition within African borders.

For AGRA President Alice Ruhweza, the real test lies in making trade work for the people who grow Africa's food. "Trade will not transform Africa's food systems unless farmers and agri-enterprises are able to produce competitively, meet international quality standards, and connect to reliable markets," she said. "This partnership is about making intra-African food trade work in practice — linking policy to delivery so that agriculture becomes a driver of inclusive growth, resilience and shared prosperity."

Together, both institutions are betting that a well-functioning continental market is not just good economics — it is the foundation of a more food-secure, self-sufficient Africa.

Turning the tide on post harvest loss in Tanzania.

Not every major change begins with loud announcements or grand declarations. Some arrive quietly and slowly reshape the landscape.

In Tanzania’s agricultural sector, one of the most pressing yet often overlooked challenges is post harvest loss. While developed countries tend to lose around 40 per cent of food at the retail and consumer stages, Tanzania faces a very different reality. Nearly 40 per cent of food is lost during post harvest handling and processing.

For horticultural produce such as fruits and vegetables, the situation is even more serious, with losses climbing to nearly 70 per cent. Poor storage facilities, weak transport systems, pests, rodents, diseases and mould all play a part. Policy gaps, infrastructure challenges and limited coordination also contribute to the problem.

The impact reaches far beyond the farm. Food security is weakened and farmers lose potential income. Tanzania has avoided famine in recent years, yet the country has developed a large market for its grains and pulses across neighbouring nations and overseas. Demand from these markets remains strong and far from fully satisfied. Food lost after harvest could have helped bridge this gap, increase export earnings and improve farmers’ livelihoods.

With the population now at about 66 million and growing rapidly, pressure on food systems continues to rise while farmland steadily declines. Recognising these challenges, the government introduced the National Post Harvest Management Strategy under the Agricultural Sector Development Programme Phase II. The goal is to reduce post harvest losses by half.

Technology is playing an important role in this effort. The Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT, working through the Pan Africa Bean Research Alliance programme, partnered with the Tanzania Agricultural Research Institute to launch the project titled “Scaling Multi-Crop Threshing Machines for Women and Youth Empowerment in Tanzania”.

Through this initiative, farmers were introduced to MultiCrop Thresher machines capable of threshing and cleaning crops including maize, beans, sorghum, pigeon peas, sunflower, soybeans, finger millet, cowpeas, lablab and green grams. Beyond cutting losses, the machines reduce labour demands, improve grain quality and open business opportunities for young people and women.

Most of the beneficiaries were women and youth who received the machines at a 50 per cent subsidy after training by Imara Tech Ltd. Founded in 2016 by Alfred Chengula, the company has grown into a promising agri tech enterprise producing equipment for smallholder farmers across several African countries. Its journey shows how local innovation can strengthen food systems, create jobs and support a more secure agricultural future for Tanzania.