Mohammed Ibrahim, executive secretary of the National Agricultural Development Fund (NADF), has called for a new financial architecture that coordinates public, private and concessional capital to accelerate Africa’s food systems transformation and implementation of the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP).
Ibrahim spoke during the Policy & State Capability Thematic Plenary: “Aligning Investment to Fast-Track CAADP Objectives” at the Africa Food Systems Forum (AFSF) in Kigali, Rwanda.
He said African countries must move beyond conventional funding of agricultural programmes towards structured financing systems that align investments with national priorities, de-risk projects and attract greater private-sector capital.
“We’re continuously trying to move from just funding to a financial architecture,” Ibrahim said.
He explained that NADF’s approach focuses on identifying national priorities, developing credible investment opportunities and strategically deploying concessional and public resources to catalyse additional financing.
According to him, Africa’s agricultural financing challenge is not only about the availability of capital, but also the fragmentation of existing resources and the absence of effective structures to coordinate investments.
“We want to see that we are coordinating financial capital because there is sometimes a problem of capital availability, but also fragmentation of capital, that lack of a structure,” he said.
Ibrahim said NADF is working to address these gaps by de-risking agricultural investments and building credible, bankable project pipelines capable of attracting private-sector financing.
He stressed that public resources should be strategically deployed to “crowd in, not crowd out” private investment, noting that the absence of commercially viable projects remains a major constraint to mobilising capital.
“If we do not have credible pipelines or the right projects that would attract private capital, then what do we do?” he asked.
The NADF Boss also called for stronger data and accountability systems to improve investment decisions and ensure agricultural financing delivers measurable benefits, particularly for smallholder farmers.
“The first is that we are strengthening data for investment decisions. No investment decision is made without looking at the data and what it shows,” he said.
Ibrahim advocated a shift from measuring agricultural interventions by the amount of money spent to assessing their actual impact.
“We are pushing for a transition towards accountability for outcomes. So, what has that money changed on the ground?” he said.
He said success should be measured not only by increased yields, but also by improvements in farmer profitability, participation in agricultural value chains, resilience and livelihoods.
Ibrahim further advocated independent monitoring, evaluation and learning systems to determine what works, identify gaps and generate evidence for scaling successful interventions.
Also speaking, Ana Maria Loboguerrero, Director of Adaptive and Equitable Food Systems at the Gates Foundation, said philanthropic capital could play a catalytic role by providing patient, higher-risk financing for innovative agricultural solutions before commercial investors enter.
She said such financing could generate evidence, strengthen public-sector capabilities and reduce risks, ultimately making agricultural investments more attractive to commercial capital.
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