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The East African Community (EAC) Heads of State, convening at the summit, have reached a consensus that enhancing investments in climate-smart agriculture and renewable energy represents the most effective strategy for addressing the challenges posed by climate change. This approach aims to not only mitigate the impact of climate change but also enhance the accessibility and availability of food for their citizens.

The Summit of the East African Community (EAC) Heads of State agrees that increased investment in climate smart agriculture and renewable energy is the best approach to mitigate the impact of climate change and improving access to and availability of food for their citizens during the EAC High-Level Forum on Climate Change and Food Security in Arusha, Tanzania on Thursday 23^rd November 2023 

The Heads of State further agreed that there was a need to improve rainwater harvesting to ensure increased availability of water for irrigation agriculture.
The Summit also agreed to reduce post-harvest losses of food through the adoption of modern technologies that will ensure better storage and distribution of agricultural products.

The Heads of State were also in consensus that increasing forest cover and jealously protecting the existing ones will increases the region and Africa’s prospects in carbon trading and climate financing vis-à-vis the rest of the world.  

The Heads of State also disclosed that the EAC would approach the upcoming COP 28 Climate Summit to be held in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates, from 30th November – 12th December 2023 as one bloc.

The Heads of State who spoke during the EAC High-Level Forum on Climate Change and Food Security in Arusha, Tanzania on Thursday further noted the importance of establishing a platform to share experiences on environmental sustainability, disaster management and cross-border management of natural resources.  

Speaking at the forum, H.E. Evariste Ndayishimiye, the Chairperson of the Summit and President of Burundi, said that his country has nine (9) months of rain annually but was taking measures to become more climate resilient.
President Ndayishimiye said that Burundi was investing in agroforestry to protect its land against soil erosion, adding that the country embarked on afforestation programme five years ago to ensure that its landscape was covered by forests.

Speaking on behalf of President Yoweri Museveni, Uganda’s 1st Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for EAC Affairs, Right Hon. Rebecca Alitwala Kadaga, said that Uganda was evicting people from its wetlands due to excessive use and abuse that has had devastating impacts on the environment.  
Right Hon. Kadaga said that the government was relocating those evicted from wetlands to other areas and encouraging them to undertake more environment-friendly activities such as cage farming and soil cultivation. The 1st Deputy Prime Minister emphasised the importance of good food storage facilities noting that Africa was a land of contradictions whereby some countries could be under severe drought, yet others were experiencing bumper harvests, adding that suitable storage facilities would ensure the availability and access to food by all.  Right Hon. Kadaga called for optimal use of the Congo and Nile rivers’ basins to increase the continent’s food production potential.  

President Suluhu disclosed that Tanzania was investing in climate smart technologies through the Build Better Tomorrow, an initiative that is aimed at increasing the involvement of youth and women in agriculture to boost agricultural production and reduce poverty while conserving the environment.

President Suluhu emphasised the role of the private sector in post-harvest Agro-processing and value addition, adding that the government was also facilitating irrigation schemes by building dams to harvest rainwater.

President Suluhu revealed that due to increased agricultural production, Tanzania was now exporting rice, avocadoes, and other horticultural exports to the regional and international markets. She added that the country was giving tax incentives to investors in green renewable energies, agricultural machinery and inputs and value addition in agriculture.

In his remarks, Kenya’s President William Ruto said that his country has prioritised the conservation of its water towers that are being fenced to guard against encroachment and destruction. He described Kenya as 80% arid and semi-arid saying that the country doesn’t have enough rain but has adequate water.

President Ruto said that the government had hired 1,000 new forest rangers to ensure that there is adequate human capital to protect the national forest cover and reiterated that the country’s commitment to plant 15 billion trees over the next 10 years to protect its environment and conserve its water towers.  

President Ruto said that the country had registered 6.5 million farmers and distributed subsidised fertilisers to them by eliminating brokers, middlemen, and cartels, adding that the fertiliser subsidies had enabled the country to increase maize production by 40 per cent from 40 million tonnes in 2022 to 61 million tonnes in 2023.  

To manage post-harvest losses, President Ruto said that the country had purchased 100 driers to be distributed across the country.  
On enabling access to climate financing, President Ruto said that there was a need to refashion multilateral financial institutions to give affordable financing for climate mitigation.

On his part, Rwandan Prime Minister Edouard Ngirente who represented President Paul Kagame at the forum, said that the country had opted to create synergy between the government and the private sector to increase investment in agriculture, which is largely considered as a risk sector by investors.

The PM said that the government of Rwanda had invested seed capital of 100 million Rwanda francs even as he added that a further 300 million Euros had been mobilised for the fund, the goal being to encourage the private sector to invest more in agriculture.

Giving the keynote address at the forum, H.E. Hailemariam Desalgn, the Chairperson of the Agrarian Revolution for Africa and former Prime Minister of Ethiopia, said that Africa must prioritise adaptation in its food systems to ensure resilience.