Overview: Introducing F-SAMA including the AfricaMechanize Platform: Targeting Heads or Directors of Agricultural Mechanization & Engineering Services (HAMES/DAMES)
Date: Tuesday, 17 November 2020 Time: 09:00 – 11:20 am (GMT) Accra, Ghana

Brief

Sustainable Agricultural Mechanization (SAM) in Africa is an urgent matter and an indispensable pillar for attaining the Zero Hunger vision by 2025, as stated in the Malabo Declaration of 2014 – Goal 2 of the Sustainable Development Goals – and the Prosperous Africa We Want of Agenda 2063. Doubling agricultural productivity and eliminating hunger and malnutrition in Africa by 2025 will not be realized unless mechanization is accorded utmost importance.

Understanding this situation, AUC and FAO, through an Africa-wide consultative process, developed a Framework for Sustainable Agricultural Mechanization in Africa (F-SAMA) that was launched in October 2018. It aims to inform policy and decision makers in the Member States, the Regional Economic Communities (RECs) in Africa, and the wider development community dealing with agricultural development on the significance of mainstreaming SAM in the overall national and regional agricultural development programmes.

This virtual webinar, targeting the Directors and Heads of Agricultural Mechanization Services, is the first in a series, organized to provide an opportunity to create a participatory environment for the establishment of a regional implementation mechanism of F-SAMA. The Webinar will provide the platform to share information and update on the progress made by member states in operationalizing the framework. In addition to presentations, facilitated discussion and questions and answers sessions will be implemented to generate more insights into the issues being discussed. Experts from FAO, AUC, ACT, Directors and Heads of Agricultural Mechanization Services in SSA, and other mechanization stakeholders, will share experience on the importance of mechanization. This will include during and post COVID-19 and discuss how to expedite operationalization of the F-SAMA.