Events
UNIDO's General Director, Dr. Yumkella, intervened during Ipack-Ima 2012
Milan, March 1st 2012. “As we look at 2030 the world need to increase the production by 50% and Africa has the potential to meet that demand. We believe that governments, indeed, shouldn’t look at Africa just as a place for row materials, on the contrary, as a business partner as well as a potential area for demand of products in the future. This also because, of the eleven fastest growing countries in the world, today in 2011, seven of them are in Africa”. With this speech, UNIDO General Director, Kandeh K. Yumkella, intervened to the International Conference, entitled “Enhancing Food Safety and Food Security in Africa Processing and packaging technologies from farm gate to the consumer”, organized by Ipack-Ima with the support of UNIDO and the UN agro-food agencies.
Moreover, Director Yumkella highlighted that several countries such as Brazil, India, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam and, recently, Cambodia have been able to achieve food security and, at the same time, to trade food products with the rest of the world. Africa can partner with those countries that want to invest in the African agriculture and, above all, with Italy. “Italy – Dr. Yumkella explained – has the best technology for small and medium enterprises. This country has been very successful in organizing SMEs business clusters and business districts. This fair let Italian excellences to exhibit the available technology in the field of packaging and food processing (that represents a crucial sector to develop good supply-chains as well as to reduce the post-harvest losses) but, most of all, to them it could be an occasion to identify potential partenerships”.
Mr. Richard Sezibera, East African Community General Secretary, highlighted that “Africa is leader in the production of dozens of food products, has 60% of the world’s unfarmed land and has been least affected by soil pollution. These three conditions make it the world region holding the highest agricultural development potential over the next years: Africa will be able to provide food and bioenergy for the entire planet. Thanks to the win-win solutions, the free grant help mechanism is replaced by business opportunities for all. However, in addition to this policy we have to consider technologies and management techniques helping to reduce waste and to increase both productivity and cooperation between developed markets and emerging countries”.
