KIGALI, Rwanda — September 3, 2026 — The world’s largest publicly funded agricultural research network, CGIAR, has showcased a range of science-backed innovations designed to help Africa transform its food systems and achieve the goals of the continent’s new agricultural development strategy.
The innovations, presented during the Africa Food Systems Forum (AFSF) in Kigali, focus on areas including climate resilience, digital agriculture, agricultural finance and nutrition. They are intended to demonstrate how proven technologies and approaches can be scaled up through increased investment and stronger partnerships.
Among the solutions showcased was a digital fertilizer advisory system that has helped increase yields by up to 25 percent for nearly 50,000 farmers in Ethiopia.
CGIAR also highlighted a package combining climate-smart, digital and financial innovations that has increased crop yields by 80 percent among women farmers in rural Kenya.
Another innovation is a financing model that has helped unlock $1.5 billion in funding for agricultural innovations in Nigeria, Ethiopia and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
CGIAR said it has developed more than 470 food systems innovations globally in recent years, with its work benefiting more than six million farmers across Africa.
The AFSF provided an opportunity for CGIAR leaders, African governments, international funders and other stakeholders to explore ways of taking some of the most promising innovations from research and pilot projects to wider implementation.
The discussions come as African countries begin implementing the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) Strategy and Action Plan 2026–2035, an ambitious framework aimed at transforming the continent’s food systems into engines of economic growth and prosperity.
However, Africa’s food systems transformation faces significant challenges.
The continent currently carries the world’s largest burden of hunger, while extreme weather and El Niño-related conditions are expected to affect rainfall and agricultural production in parts of Africa.
At the same time, geopolitical instability has increased the cost of agricultural inputs, while conflicts in several parts of the continent continue to expose millions of people to severe food insecurity and malnutrition.
African governments are also facing high debt burdens and constrained public budgets, while traditional development assistance is declining.
Against this backdrop, CGIAR said the challenge is no longer simply developing agricultural solutions, but creating the partnerships and financing mechanisms needed to take proven innovations to scale.
“The innovations Africa needs to solve its food systems challenges exist and are proven. What’s missing is the partnerships and funding infrastructure needed to de-risk investment and deliver these solutions at scale,” said Ismahane Elouafi, Executive Managing Director of CGIAR.
She said scaling proven scientific solutions is essential to turning Africa’s ambitious food systems goals into tangible results.
“Scaling science that works is the missing link between the continent’s ambitious transformation goals and the real-world impact to make them reality,” Elouafi said.
CGIAR has at least four research centres headquartered in Africa, while at least 10 others maintain significant operations across the continent.
Through its forthcoming Strategy 2040, CGIAR said it intends to strengthen the connection between scientific research, development finance, public policy and national delivery systems in order to accelerate the adoption of innovations that have already demonstrated results.
Tim Krupnik, Director of CGIAR’s Scaling for Impact Program, said the organisation’s major advantage is its evidence base, built through decades of research examining which agricultural innovations work, for whom and under what conditions.
He said this evidence can help investors reduce risks before committing capital to agricultural technologies and approaches.
According to Krupnik, CGIAR-backed innovations have generated roughly $10 in returns for every $1 invested once brought to scale, providing a strong case for multilateral financial institutions to invest in proven agricultural solutions.
“That’s exactly the kind of track record that makes multilateral lenders like the World Bank and the African Development Bank want to put their money behind innovations developed by CGIAR centers and our partners, especially as traditional aid shrinks,” Krupnik said.
The organisation said the next phase of Africa’s food systems transformation will therefore require closer collaboration between researchers, governments, investors, development partners and the private sector to ensure that successful innovations reach farmers and communities at scale.
Gabriel UZABAKIRIHO / KIGALI TIMES