Dr. Emma Naluyima of Uganda and Baba Dioum of Senegal jointly win US$100,000 Africa Food Prize at the African Green Revolution Forum

During a press conferance

Two professionals, who are both at the same time successful agricultural producers, have today been announced as the joint winners of the 2019 Africa Food Prize. Dr. Emma Naluyima, a smallholder farmer and private veterinarian from Uganda, and Baba Dioum, a policy champion and agricultural entrepreneur from Senegal were recognized for their achievements in demonstrating and promoting innovative and sustainable growth in Africa´s agriculture through improved resource use and market links.

Naluyima quit employment to become a farmer, transforming her 1-acre plot into a showcase of profitable and environmentally friendly agriculture.

The secret to her success is innovative integration of crop and livestock production, based on recycling of farm resources to provide natural fertilizers and pesticides as well as biogas.

Naluyima, who generates a year from her farm, also hosts up to 10,000 visiting farmers to share knowledge through her advisory service.

Also a prosperous farmer, Baba Dioum has excelled in the policy sphere, leading the introduction of key reforms in the agriculture sector of his own country, before taking on influential roles in regional and Africa-wide policy development.

With commitment,. Dioum successfully promoted cross-border agricultural trade in West Africa and helped to advance the trade dimension of the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP).

H.E. Olusegun Obasanjo, former President of Nigeria, who chairs the Africa Food Prize Committee, congratulated Naluyima and Dioum on behalf of other Committee members, praising them for their courage in defying the status quo to open new pathways toward a more prosperous agriculture and for their solidarity with many others who wish to follow in their footsteps.

“What most strikes me about these year´s winners is how their academic and professional success has gone hand in hand with their success as farmers,” said Obasanjo.

“Rather than turn away from the countryside like so many others, they have embraced farming, using their talents and knowledge to demonstrate its enormous commercial possibilities, he added.

In other words, they practice what they preach, and this lends real credibility to their message about the value of technical and policy innovation in agriculture.”

The 2019 winners, chosen from a total of close to 200 nominees, exemplify the central aim of the Africa Food Prize, which is to put a spotlight on innovations that promise to create a new era of food security and economic opportunity for all Africans.

Not content with the immediate financial rewards of her 1-acre farm - US$100,000 per year, Dr. Naluyima has turned it into a platform for sharing knowledge about her innovative model with the 10,000 people who seek her out each year.

Along with her husband, Naluyima has lso set up a primary school – on the same 1-acre plot - that gives special emphasis to science and technology for its close to 300 students.

Her experience and achievements speak volume about the importance of this kind of education for enabling rural women and youth to build more appealing livelihoods.

“I am a firm believer that if you take good care of a farm, it will care of you all the way to the bank. This is I know to be true as it is what I do on my 1-acre farm where I practice integrated farming,” said. Naluyima.

“I feel honoured to be a winner of the Africa Food Prize, and hope this connects me with new sources of knowledge to share. A passion to succeed is not enough; you also need knowledge, which I am always in search.”

Baba Dioum´s whole life and career have revolved around markets and trade in agricultural commodities. It thus comes as no surprise that, while pursuing his policy work, he also engaged in the production of vegetables and later potato for export, eventually shifting to mango production for the export market.

To help consolidate West Africa´s position in this market, he created a regional network of mango exporters and developed a successful regional brand.

“We Africans are good conservationists, and we also have strong collective traditions,” said Mr. Dioum. “These are important sources of strength, as we organize ourselves to compete in markets, using new technologies, and seek to ensure that our agribusinesses are sustainable. I am humbled to receive this prize and sincerely hope it will draw attention to what Africa´s aspiring entrepreneurs can do when the conditions are right,” He added.

Dr. Agnes Kalibata, President of the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA), another key supporter of the Africa Food Prize, also expressed her delight with this year´s outcome:

“The lives and accomplishments of these winners reinforce my optimism that Africa is on the cusp of a new era of growing prosperity, driven by sustained agricultural transformation. Achievements like theirs can, in turn, leverage digital transformation, which is the focus of this year´s Africa Green Revolution Forum (AGRF).”

About the Africa Food Prize

The Africa Food Prize began as the Yara Prize, and was established in 2005 by Yara International ASA in Norway to honour achievements in African agriculture.
The Africa Food Prize honours outstanding contributions within every aspect of agriculture and food production that is clearly related to combating hunger and reducing poverty in Africa.
The Africa Food Prize winners are selected by an independent committee chaired by H.E. Olusegun Obasanjo, former President of Nigeria..

The Prize Committee considers the following criteria for the Prize:
• Contribution to reducing poverty and hunger and/or improving food and nutrition security in measurable terms
• Contribution to providing a vital source of income and/or employment in measurable terms
• Potential for transformative change through scalability, replication, and sustainability
• Increased awareness and cooperation among African audiences and organizations
• Proven leadership potential of the individual or organization, specifically the ability to persevere despite significant challenges or risks.