The National Agricultural Development Fund (NADF) has called for a new financial architecture to accelerate Africa’s food systems transformation and implementation of the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP).

NADF’s executive secretary, Mohammed Ibrahim, made the call at a Policy and State Capability Thematic Plenary at the Africa Food Systems Forum (AFSF) in Kigali, Rwanda.

In a statement on Thursday, Mr Ibrahim said the architecture should coordinate public, private, and concessional capital, align investments with national priorities, and de-risk agricultural projects.

He said African countries must move beyond conventional funding towards structured financing systems that could attract more private-sector capital.

“Africa’s agricultural financing challenge is not only about the availability of capital, but also the fragmentation of existing resources and the absence of effective structures to coordinate investments,” he said.

Mr Ibrahim said NADF was identifying national priorities, developing bankable investment opportunities and deploying public and concessional resources to attract additional financing.

“We want to see that we are coordinating financial capital because there is sometimes a problem of capital availability, but also fragmentation of capital; that lack of a structure,” he said.

He said public resources should be used to “crowd in, not crowd out” private investment, noting that a shortage of commercially viable projects remained a major constraint to mobilising capital. The NADF chief also advocated stronger data and accountability systems to improve investment decisions and ensure financing delivered measurable benefits, especially for smallholder farmers.

“First of all, we are strengthening data for investment decisions. No investment decision is made without looking at the data and what it shows,” he said.

Mr Ibrahim said agricultural interventions should be assessed by their impact rather than the amount of money spent.

“We are pushing for a transition towards accountability for outcomes. So, what has that money changed on the ground?” he said.

He said success should be measured through improved yields, farmer profitability, participation in value chains, resilience and livelihoods.

Mr Ibrahim also called for independent monitoring, evaluation and learning systems to identify effective interventions, address gaps and generate evidence for scaling.

Ana Loboguerrero, director of Adaptive and Equitable Food Systems at the Gates Foundation, said philanthropic capital could provide patient, higher-risk financing for innovative agricultural solutions before commercial investors came in.

She said such financing could generate evidence, strengthen public-sector capacity and reduce risks, making agricultural investments more attractive to commercial capital.

(NAN)