In 2020, the World Food Programme (WFP) estimated that an additional 130 million people would face acute hunger due to the COVID-19 crisis, nearly doubling the 135 million people already facing acute hunger. In 2021, the supply chain disruption due to COVID-19 impacted the world economies and caused inflation in agricultural commodities and basic foodstuffs. In 2022, the Russia-Ukraine crisis, which is already impacting food prices and availability globally, is also likely to widen the hunger and malnutrition gap across Africa, considering the role of the two conflicting parties in the supply chain of fertilizer, wheat, staple crops, and crude oil. This has exacerbated the number of vulnerable communities affected by a lack of nutritious meals per day and food necessities for improving food security and ultimately for healthy and well-nourished citizens.

Against this backdrop, the year 2022 has been declared by the African Union as the Year of Nutrition themed - “Strengthening Resilience in Nutrition and Food Security on The African Continent: Strengthening Agro-Food Systems, Health and Social Protection Systems for the Acceleration of Human, Social and Economic Capital Development’. The emphasis on this critical sector for this year highlights the significant role of nutritional and food systems in facilitating access, affordability, and availability of healthy and nutritious food for all Africans across the continent, where most of them are still facing extreme hunger. In fact, according to the projection by United Nations, Africa will be unable to feed 60 percent of its population by 2025

In this context, the focus on nutrition this year is expected to result in robust investment and secure meaningful political pledges among the Member States that will boost nutrition investments for socio-economic and human capital development in Africa. Most importantly, it results in long-term solutions that can help build resilience against internal and external shocks and reorganise Africa’s food systems and Food and Nutrition Security early warning systems.

The urgency of choosing this year to focus on nutrition should not only end with policy and political advocacy engagements among the Member States but result in full commitment and action on the ground. This includes the implementation of strategic frameworks such as the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP), particularly the Malabo Nutrition Declaration and Agenda 2063 Goals and Priorities on boosting agricultural productivity and production. Moreover, Member States' renewal of commitments in the Malabo Declaration to put into action the previous CAADP call on allocating at least 10 percent of their budget towards food and agriculture transformation will be paramount in addressing the hunger and malnutrition crisis plaguing the continent.

Finally, the Africa Common Position on Food Systems is in place to raise awareness, generate consensus on a shared vision, and galvanise crucial individual and collective actions, such as policy alignment and increased investments, to construct and sustain resilient, sustainable, and inclusive food systems. As a result, bringing these steps to fruition will be a burden that all Member States will have to carry if we are to eradicate hunger and malnutrition once and for all across Africa.