Achieving Food Security and Sovereignty through the AfCFTA

The document examines the intersection of the AfCFTA and CAADP in promoting intra-African agricultural trade and productivity. It identifies significant barriers to food trade, including high tariffs on sensitive food items, burdensome sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) standards for small enterprises, and a lack of coordinated strategic food reserves. The brief argues that while food security (access) and food sovereignty (self-sufficiency) often require diverging policies, the AfCFTA provides a framework to balance both through targeted tariff removal, simplified compliance for micro-enterprises, and the protection of indigenous genetic resources.

• Intra-African food trade is disproportionately low compared to other global regions; only about 16% of Africa's total food trade is intra-continental, while regions like Asia and Europe exceed 60%. Trade in staples is higher at 26%, and informal trade accounts for an additional 7–16% of intra-African trade, mostly in food products.
• The AfCFTA's potential for food trade is hindered by the classification of many food products as 'sensitive' (7% of line items) or 'excluded' (3% of line items) from tariff removal schedules, with many regional economic communities (RECs) maintaining protection through common external tariffs (CET).
• Sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) compliance costs act as a significant barrier to vertical mobility for women and youth-led small-scale enterprises, adding an estimated 13% to the price of traded foodstuffs.
• The Alliance for Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) has faced criticism from the Alliance for Food Sovereignty in Africa (AFSA) for promoting patented seeds that crowd out indigenous crops, compromise genetic diversity, and increase reliance on carbon-intensive fertilisers.
• The CAADP's previous 10-year strategy showed limited progress at the national level regarding agricultural production and intra-African food trade, leading the 2026–2035 strategy to shift focus toward agro-processing, mid-supply chain activities, and affirmative action for women and youth.
• There is a critical need for a continental policy framework for strategic food reserves to coordinate cross-border food aid and improve fiscal efficiency, as current buffers were significantly depleted during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.

APA

South African Institute of International Affairs (2025). Achieving Food Security and Sovereignty through the AfCFTA. https://saiia.org.za/research/achieving-food-security-and-sovereignty-through-the-afcfta/

Chicago

South African Institute of International Affairs. Achieving Food Security and Sovereignty through the AfCFTA. 2025. https://saiia.org.za/research/achieving-food-security-and-sovereignty-through-the-afcfta/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=South African Institute of International Affairs |title=Achieving Food Security and Sovereignty through the AfCFTA |date=11 August 2025 |url=https://saiia.org.za/research/achieving-food-security-and-sovereignty-through-the-afcfta/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{southafricaninstituteofinternationalaffairs2025achieving, author = {{South African Institute of International Affairs}}, title = {{Achieving Food Security and Sovereignty through the AfCFTA}}, institution = {South African Institute of International Affairs}, year = {2025}, month = aug, url = {https://saiia.org.za/research/achieving-food-security-and-sovereignty-through-the-afcfta/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }