CONTEXT

The African Crop Science Society (ACSS) is organizing its 13th Conference that will be hosted by Eduardo Mondlane University in collaboration with the National Agriculture Research Institute (IIAM) and other higher education institutions in Mozambique. The conference shall be held from 16th to 19th of September 2024, in Maputo, Mozambique.
The Conference will provide a platform for sharing and discussing research results that bring solutions towards enhancing agricultural development in Africa. It is expected that more than 400 scientists and innovators, farmers, entrepreneurs and agribusinesses, educators and policy makers involved in agricultural related value chains from all over Africa will attend.

Much of Africa has experienced in recent years rapid agricultural and economic growth. At the same time, population growth and demographic change, rural-urban migration, and increasing access to information and communication, have transformed food demand and systems. In many countries, the domestic food market is becoming more attractive for farmers than traditional export cash crops and postharvest activities of the food economy, such as processing, logistics and retail, are developing quickly (FAO, 2016). In addition, a transformation is underway from a subsistence agriculture into one that is more commercialized and integrated into national and international value-chains driven by small and medium private sector enterprises (SMEs). These developments are creating new growth opportunities for Africa agriculture.

However, sustainable agricultural growth in Africa is challenged by several factors. Food insecurity and malnutrition remain a major concern across the continent and without action, will be exacerbated by high population growth. Stagnant and low productivity due to lack inputs remains one of the major challenges facing African agriculture, as increases in production have mainly been the result of population increase and area expansion. The impact of climate change is another challenge facing agriculture in Africa. High rate of temperature increase on the continent is being paralleled with increased drought occurrence, higher in Africa compared to most other regions in the world. Unfortunately, Africa suffers disproportionately from climate change due to poverty and overreliance on rainfall. Africa has a young population, and family farming will remain the single largest source of employment in the coming decade (WB, 2016). Modernizing and making the agriculture sector attractive to young people is another important challenge facing African agriculture with a high potential impact on poverty reduction and agricultural growth (FAO, 2016).

These challenges require robust and dynamic innovations that target traditional agriculture and its stressful environments. Crop research and innovation is the backbone of sustainable agricultural growth, bringing new knowledge and practical solutions to the problems faced by farmers and entrepreneurs. African Crop Science Society (ACSS) offers one of the most positioned platforms for sharing of actions, innovations and other developments in crop science and production in Africa.