DialogueNEXT in Africa

WORLD FOOD PRIZE

Born to Feed the Future

DialogueNEXT in Africa was held at the Safari Park Hotel in Nairobi, Kenya, on June 30, 2026.

Across Africa, a new generation was rising with its hands immersed in the work of food systems and its eyes set on the future. Young people were entering agriculture with conviction and opportunity in view, bringing energy and enterprise to one of humanity’s most essential callings. Agriculture was no longer a profession of last resort. It was a place of possibility, leadership and purpose.

At the center were farmers who had long supported their communities through times of both uncertainty and celebration, anchoring African agriculture with knowledge and resilience shaped by lived experience. In doing so, they not only secured their own livelihoods and those around them, but also helped maintain the balance of local food systems.

Women, many of them farmers, traders and processors, carried much of the weight in how food was produced, moved, prepared and sustained across households, markets and economies, often without recognition but never without impact.

Across the value chain, agriculture was being reshaped. Technology was increasing productivity and more food was being processed nearer to where it was produced, helping retain greater economic value within local economies. Markets were expanding to meet growing demand. At the same time, logistics and digital platforms were redefining how food moved, transforming agriculture as a system of enterprise.

Born to Feed the Future was rooted in the belief that Africa was not waiting for solutions from elsewhere. Momentum was building as farmers strengthened production alongside young agripreneurs, while researchers, institutions and regional partners aligned more closely with African realities and priorities.

This was a moment that had to be met. By 2050, more than one in four people on the planet was projected to be African, up from one in ten just a century before. Africa could and had to rise to this challenge, feeding itself, kickstarting its economies and transforming itself into a global breadbasket for the world.