BY ANDREW KUNAMBURA AFRICA is set to miss the goal to achieve zero hunger by 2030, Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO)’s regional representative for Africa, Abebe Haile-Gabriel, has said. Haile-Gabriel said this during a review of progress made by the continent towards attaining that goal so far at the Africa Regional Forum on Sustainable Development (ARFSD) which is currently underway in Congo Brazzaville. The meeting was co-organised by the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) and the World Food Programme (WFP), in collaboration with the government of the Republic of Congo. “The results remain unsatisfactory and there are many challenges due to climate change, the poor economic situation and the negative impacts of COVID-19, as well as the lack of public investment,” Haile-Gabriel said. He, however, said the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) was a unique opportunity for the transformation of the continent’s food system. Haile-Gabriel said political will and commitment at the highest level were key in efforts to end hunger on the continent, adding that national and local level actions and investments were also critical. He said there was an urgent need for the continent to rebuild after the COVID-19 pandemic, with governments investing in social protection measures to save the most vulnerable in society. “The transformation of the African food system is crucial to help end hunger. The adoption of holistic multi-sectoral approaches is needed,” Haile-Gabriel said. World Food Programme representative Chris Toe said African countries should prioritise and scale up investments in rural transformation, sustainable infrastructure and human capital development as they work towards eliminating hunger and food insecurity. This, he said, would not only help to sustain ongoing progress, but also assist in the continent’s quest to achieve zero hunger as espoused in the SDGs and Africa’s 2025 commitment to end hunger and Agenda 2063 aspirations. “We have declared that the soil must take over the subsoil,” he said, adding: “There is political will to carry out all the actions necessary to achieve food security.” The event provided a platform for member States to reflect and share notes on transformative actions and investments that facilitate the building of Africa’s food systems better towards meeting the aspirations and goals of the 2030 Agenda and African Union’s Agenda 2063. Follow us on Twitter @NewsDayZimbabwe