Africa Agribusiness & Science Week (AASW8)
Event Background
The AASW is the main continental platform of all stakeholders involved in agriculture and agribusiness research and innovation in Africa. This platform assembles over 1,500 stakeholders every three years to take stock of progress on research and innovation, share information, network, create business alliances, and map out priorities for joint action. The last AASW (the 7th edition) was held in Kigali, Rwanda in June 2016.
The 8th AASW will be held in Durban, South Africa from June 5th to 8th, 2023. It will focus on a topical issue on the continent, that is, strengthening linkages between agribusiness and science plus innovation to improve the continent’s productivity and competitiveness in agro-industry. To underline the shift in the event’s thematic focus, the AASW brand has been tweaked from “Africa Agriculture Science Week” to “Africa Agribusiness and Science Week”.
FARA is co-organizing the event with the CAADP XP4 partners i.e., CCARDESA, ASARECA, CORAF, AFAAS, the Government of the Republic of South Africa and in collaboration with numerous other partners including AUC, AUDA, GFAR, YPARD, PAFO, One CGIAR, FAO, AFDB, UNIDO, AFBC, Sappi, AGRA, AWARD, ICRISAT, DESIRA LIFT, PANAP, RUFORUM, Standard bank. Development Partners collaborating in this event include EC, IFAD, AfDB, AfreximBank etc.
The event will aim to strengthen partnerships with the private sector, investors and policy makers. The target audience for the AASW includes farmers, researchers, investors, development agencies, and country pavilions. The event is expected to host at least 1,000 delegates, with over 65% being international participants.
The AASW8 will feature an opening plenary session which shall include a high-level panel session and award of the FARA leadership prize; plenary sessions, parallel session, side events (workshops) focusing on the event’s theme and on how to harness opportunities provided by the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA), a broad-based Agritech Expo, research-to-business match-making sessions, and an investment forum. The event will also have field visits to selected agribusiness projects to demonstrate the opportunities and challenges in agricultural advancement and establishing agro-processing zones. Delegates will have the opportunity to participate in science and business discussions and connect with investors, innovators, researchers, and farmers across the entire agricultural value chain.
The event will be held at the Durban International Convention Center and Southern Sun has been identified as one of the preferred hotels for key delegates.
AASW8 Thematic Areas
Africa’s Agriculture and Agribusiness Market Set to Top US$ One Trillion in 2030
The Africa Agribusiness and Science Week (AASW) in April 2023 is the continent’s MUST-ATTEND Science-to-Business platform for SPONSORS AND OR EXHIBITORS as it provides a one-stop platform to develop relations, exchange knowledge and assess opportunities