Centering Women and Youth in Agrifood Transformation: Kenya National Food Systems Summit (KNFSS)
Kenya’s food systems transformation takes five strategic pathways: Women and Youth Empowerment; Digitalisation of Agri-Food Systems; Improving Dietary Diversity; Climate Action; and Partnerships and Collaborations
We, the Africa CSID, are happy to have been part of the organising team for Pathway 1 participation in the just concluded Kenya National Food Systems Summit alongside many other great stakeholder organisations. Together with ICCASA, WingFarm, WFF Kenya, Concern Worldwide, WHH, FAO, and the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock, we organised the women and youth empowerment in the Agrifood system side event that culminated into a women and youth empowerment (pathway 1) declaration. The declaration will me merged into one together with the declarations of the 4 other pathways, and informs Kenya’s position during the upcoming regional food systems summit, and the UNFSS+4.
The powerful declaration by youth and women leaders from diverse sectors, including smallholder producers, civil society, government, and the private sector, called for urgent, inclusive, and climate-resilient food systems transformation. The group committed to revitalising indigenous knowledge, scaling climate-smart agriculture, ensuring equitable access to resources, promoting local post-harvest innovations, demanding inclusive decision-making, strengthening market systems, and mainstreaming agrifood education from early childhood to tertiary levels.
The declaration urged the Government of Kenya to repurpose subsidies, integrate indigenous knowledge, and guarantee meaningful youth and women’s participation in policy processes, while development partners and private sector actors were called upon to invest in gender-transformative, locally-led food systems solutions and youth agro-entrepreneurship. Regional and global actors were encouraged to advocate for smallholder-focused adaptation finance. The declaration concluded with a resolute call: “Nothing about food systems without us.
We look forward to participating in the upcoming Regional Food Systems Summit next week and the UNFSS+4 in July, as we continue advancing our work with marginalised communities and reaffirming our commitments.
