A €2m Africa Agri-Food Development Fund, designed to support the development of new partnerships between the agri-food sectors in Ireland and Africa, was launched yesterday by The Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Mr Eamon Gilmore TD, Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Simon Coveney TD and Minister of State for Trade and Development Mr Joe Costello TD.
The fund is part of Ireland’s overseas development cooperation programme. The pilot phase of two-years will focus on Tanzania and Kenya.
The aim of the programme is to encourage and support Irish agri-food companies to transfer knowledge and experience to the African agri-food sector in order to build and in turn strengthen the African food industry and meet the continent’s food needs.
The financing, taken from existing overseas development aid budgets in the Departments of Foreign Affairs and Trade and Agriculture, Food and the Marine, will be managed by a steering committee comprised of expertise from both Departments. The group will prepare a report which will prioritise areas for support in the pilot phase.