Session One

More and better irrigation development is essential to address increasing food insecurity and reduce negative impacts from climate extreme events on the African continent. However, the irrigated area has not significantly increased in Africa since the 2014 Malabo Declaration. The African Union Summit on the Post-Malabo Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP), held on the 13th January 2025 in Uganda (Kampala), has adopted the 10-year (2026 – 2035) CAADP Strategy and Action Plan (called the Kampala Declaration). The Declaration targets a 45 percent increase in agrifood outputs to ensure food security, resilience and sustainability in agrifood Systems in Africa. Agricultural water management in general and irrigation development in particular is identified as a critical driver of agricultural transformation in Africa. The new CAADP declaration explicitly emphasizes access to, and sustainable use of agricultural water as a key determinant of crop yields and food and nutrition security. The Declaration states that “Policymakers and stakeholders must prioritize investments in water infrastructure, research, and capacity-building to promote the adoption of sustainable practices. By ensuring sustainable water resource use, Africa can enhance agricultural resilience and support the growth, reliability and sustainability of its agrifood systems.” (CAADP-AUC, 2025). Furthermore, the Kampala Declaration is aligned with the 2024 Nairobi Declaration for improved soil and water management. This side event is part of the “African Irrigation Policy Dialogue Series: Supporting food security, nutrition and climate resilience in the post-Malabo Agenda” with a broad set of partners, including ACU, AMCOW, IWMI, Akademiya2063, FAO, the AfDB, the World Bank and others. This side event will bring together key stakeholders (researchers, policy makers, and the private sector in irrigation supply chain) to identify key challenges, opportunities, and interventions needed to promote irrigation development in West Africa region

Objectives

1. Review the status and changes/progresses achieved in irrigation development in West Africa over the last decade (under the Malabo Declaration).
2. Identify key constraints/challenges and opportunities in irrigation development under the Kampala Declaration in West Africa region.
3. Identify key areas of consideration – equity (men, women, youth, marginalized groups) and sustainability (environmental, economic and social) in irrigation development.
4. Recommend key areas of institutional, technological, and financial innovations needed to scale irrigation in the region.