Africa’s population is expected to double to two billion people by 2030, which implies a huge consumption base for industrialised countries wanting to push their products onto growing markets. While the majority of developed countries are struggling with aging populations, Africa is dominated by young people. Besides this, the continent has vast amounts of underdeveloped resources, creating an opportunity for agriculture to play a key role in Africa’s future prosperity.
This is according to Dr Rutendo Hwindingwi, an expert on African development, who is also known as the African Realist. Hwindingwi is one of the keynote speakers at the 2019 Agribusiness Africa Conference.
“The arrival of new technology, such as hydroponics, improved genetics, precision farming equipment, smart phones, drone technology and so forth all promise to revolutionise agricultural production on the continent,” says Hwindingwi.
The conference is being hosted by Farmer’s Weekly, South Africa’s largest English language agricultural publication, and will be held at the PREMIER HOTEL O.R. TAMBO in Johannesburg on WEDNESDAY, 10 JULY 2019.
The event brings together top speakers and a range of stakeholders from across the agriculture, agribusiness and trade platforms to delve into the dynamics of trade between farm gate and domestic, regional and international markets. The full conference programme is available at farmersweekly.co.za/agribusiness-africa-conference.
“Agriculture is vital to Africa’s future. In many countries on the continent agriculture is the largest contributor to GDP, over half of the African population is employed in the sector, and the continent has most of the world’s arable land. Yet, Africa is still performing beneath its potential in global and regional agricultural markets,” says Denene Erasmus, editor of Farmer’s Weekly.
In light of these developmental challenges, the overarching theme for this year’s Agribusiness Africa Conference is market access, and one of the key discussion topics will be how to secure a better deal for African countries within the global agricultural trade environment.
To book your seat at the conference, visit caxtonevents.co.za.
For media queries and registrations, email denene@caxton.co.za or 087 087 8878.