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The Africa Food Systems Forum (AFS) 2025 in Dakar, Senegal, held from 31st August to 5th September, has come to a close, marking a week of rich dialogue, learning, and collaboration. Held under the theme: “Africa’s Youth Leading Collaboration, Innovation, and Implementation of Agri-Food Systems Transformation”, the Forum gathered leaders, researchers, farmers’ organisations, youth innovators, private sector actors, and development partners to reflect on challenges and forge new pathways for the continent’s food future.
In line with the Forum’s theme, young people were placed at the heart of the discussions. They are not just recipients of food systems reforms but active leaders in shaping them through agribusiness, digital innovations, and climate-smart practices. With the continent’s population projected to reach 2.5 billion by 2050 and urbanisation driving major dietary shifts, the stakes for building resilient, sustainable, and inclusive food systems could not be higher.
ANAPRI’s Executive Director, Dr Antony Chapoto, featured in two high-level panels, where he highlighted the critical role of evidence-based research in influencing public policy. He stressed that research only becomes impactful when presented in ways that policymakers can understand and use, without compromising its rigour. He also underlined ANAPRI’s unique role as an Africa-led and Africa-owned network of 16 national policy research institutes, spread across 15 countries and still expanding, committed to ensuring governments across the continent have access to rigorous, home-grown evidence for food systems transformation.
As the Forum closed, one message was clear: the work does not end in Dakar. The ideas, commitments, and collaborations formed must now be translated into tangible action across the continent. Africa’s transformation will require more than dialogue; it demands political will, strong institutions, inclusive policies, and the ability to bring together research, policymakers, civil society, and the private sector in pursuit of a shared goal.
For ANAPRI, the Forum was an opportunity to share thought leadership, build strategic partnerships, and amplify the message that Africa’s food future must be guided by Africa’s own evidence and expertise. Yet, the lessons from the AFS 2025 go beyond any single institution. They remind us that Africa’s food future depends on collective action. Collaboration across all sectors must create opportunities for youth, women, and communities at large. This is how resilience will be strengthened and access to safe, nutritious, and affordable food guaranteed.
The momentum built at AFS 2025 must now ripple across the continent, inspiring change at local, national, and regional levels. Together, Africa can build food systems that are productive, resilient, and just, shaping a future where no one is left behind.