The event was organized in close collaboration with CGIAR centers including the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), the International Potato Center (CIP), the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), the Africa Rice Center (Africa Rice), and the Center for International Forestry Research and World Agroforestry (CIFOR-ICRAF). Together, the centers demonstrated how innovation, research and multi-stakeholder collaboration can transform food systems at scale.

A panel discussion on investment gaps in transfer of technologies for food security in Africa

To set the tone, the Ministry of Agriculture of Senegal represented by Dr Boubacar Drame, Technical Advisor, opened with a welcome address that underscored the urgency of building resilient and inclusive food systems. This was followed by a presentation from IsDB, which highlighted the program design, their vision for the continent, and the centrality of CGIAR technologies and expertise in transforming the food security landscape.

Adding a regional perspective, the Government of Uganda represented by Ms Assumpta Tibamwenda, Technical Advisor also shared lessons from the Local Economic Growth Support (LEGS) Program. This flagship initiative illustrated how strategic partnerships can spur community-based economic transformation, linking national policy with grassroots action.

To guide the discussions, leading voices stepped in as moderators. Dr Namukolo Covic, ILRI Director General’s Representative to Ethiopia, led the conversation on transforming value chains, while Dr Stanford Blade, Deputy Director General–Research and Innovation, ICRISAT, steered audience interventions and framed opportunities for scaling science-based solutions through partnerships. Bringing together representatives from research institutions, multilateral development banks, governments, and the private sector, showing how investment, innovation, and trade can unlock opportunities in key value chains such as millet, sorghum, potato, and livestock. Inputs from the stakeholders ensured that the dialogue moved seamlessly from lessons learned to pathways for action.

Throughout the session, panelists:

The momentum culminated in a Thought Leaders’ Dialogue with the Director General, ICRISAT Dr Himanshu Pathak and Dr Simone Heck, Director General, CIP and Dr Siboniso Moyo, Deputy Director General Partnerships & Impact at ILRI reflecting on the transformative power of partnerships like IsDB–CGIAR in accelerating food system transformation.

From left to right Dr Siboniso Moyo the Deputy Director General Partnerships & Impact at ILRI, Dr Himanshu Pathak the Director General, ICRISAT, Dr Simon Heck the Director General (DG) CIP at a panel moderated by Dr Namukolo Covic , ILRI Director General's Representative to Ethiopia

As the session drew to a close, the expected outcomes emerged clearly: strengthened commitments from governments and financiers to support food system transformation, broader awareness of successful innovation models, and renewed momentum for youth engagement in agribusiness.