Phelelani Sibiya, Economist, FANRPAN Associate, National Agricultural Marketing Council, South Africa
Stacia Nordin, Permaculture Dietitian, NeverEndingFood Permaculture, Malawi

Transitioning to agroecology is a powerful and necessary shift toward more sustainable and resilient agricultural systems. It involves moving away from industrial farming practices that often harm the environment and instead adopting practices that work with nature.

Image Credit:  AFSTC photo of representatives of the AFSTC Advisory Committee including two members of FoSTA-Health.  Phelelani Sibiya (fourth from the left) and Stacia Nordin (far right).

The African Food Systems Transformation Collective (AFSTC) convened its first in-person stakeholder gathering in Kigali, Rwanda, in November 2024 hosted by the Rwandan Organic Agriculture Movement. Two members of the Food Systems for One Health in Southern Africa (FoSTA-Health) project, Phelelani Sibiya and Stacia Nordin, were invited to be part of the 10-member AFSTC advisory committee and attend the gathering event.

The AFSTC is a network of food systems researchers and practitioners from 12 African countries, established in 2023 to inform more coherent and evidence-based funding strategies for transitioning to agroecological food systems. It aims to cultivate a pan-African knowledge network that informs philanthropies and other stakeholders with evidence-based analysis and practical recommendations for strategies and partnership opportunities to promote agroecological food systems transitions.  The AFSTC secretariat is co-convened by the African Climate Foundation (ACF) and the Centre of Excellence in Food Security at the University of the Western Cape. For more on AFSTC see: https://africanclimatefoundation.org/research-article/african-food-systems-transformation-collective/

The gathering included about 50 participants, including AFSTC theme leaders, advisory committee members, local agroecology leaders, dignitaries, representatives of philanthropic organisations, and the AFSTC secretariat. After 18 months of online collaboration to develop issue briefs on key themes, we met to share learnings, network, strengthen relationships, and strategize on AFSTC’s future prospects.

afstc Nov 24 2(Image Credit: AFSTC) photo of Stacia Nordin providing her reflections on the last of the event.

Here are some of the recommendations of the convening:

  • Farmer and Market Support - The transition to agroecology needs to empower farmers and people involved with markets, including them as key stakeholders in decision-making processes. This approach fosters cooperation, education, and collective action for building stronger communities.
  • Support Youth Involvement in Agroecology to help cultivate a new generation of farmers and marketers who are committed to sustainable agricultural systems.
  • Start Small and Gradually Scale Up by incorporating agroecological practices in farms and markets on a small scale and gradually expand and share with confidence and experience.
  • Incentives to support the transition to agroecology and reach the stage where it is economically viable with reduced input costs (such as synthetic chemicals) and increased use of locally available resources that are currently often wasted. Agroecology opens new markets for more sustainably produced products or organic, helping farmers connect with consumers who value sustainability.
  • Promote Education on Agroecology that teaches the principles of agroecology. Raising awareness about the importance of sustainable food systems can create a culture of support for agroecology.
  • Policymakers and Funders are key to include in agroecology discussions since they are responsible for creating and overseeing progress on policies and funding their implementation.
  • Policy and Programme Support for a successful transition, such as incentives for agroecological practices, improving land governance for equitable access, subsidizing organic farming systems, providing funding for researching agroecological innovations, improving access to and strengthening markets, and fostering multi-stakeholder food and farming governance systems with stakeholders for a well-coordinated system that is innovative and continually improving.

AFSTC and FoSTA-Health use different terminologies for transitioning food systems—"agroecology" and "one health", respectively—yet they share similar objectives. Both organizations utilize research and stakeholder dialogues to promote positive change for people and the planet. In 2025, we will identify areas where efforts can be synergized, with AFSTC finalizing 18 briefs and FoSTA-Health completing research and developing models.

AFSTC Nov 24 3
(Image Credit: AFSTC) photo taken on the last day with of some of the participants.

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