India–Africa Agricultural Business Forum 06 May 2026 | New Delhi, India

AgriTech Revolution: Plowing into the Digital Era

11-October-2024 | The Park, Connaught Place, New Delhi

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Background and Rationale

India and Africa share a deep agricultural connect built on smallholder farming systems, strong rural communities, and the central role of agriculture in livelihoods and food security. Over the past five decades, India has built globally recognized success models through the Green Revolution, White Revolution, Golden Revolution, Blue Revolution, cooperative development, farmer producer organisations (FPOs), digital public infrastructure, agri-fintech, mechanisation, and market linkage systems.

Africa is entering a decisive decade for agricultural transformation, with significant opportunities in food systems modernization, value addition, farmer enterprises, climate-smart agriculture, and regional trade integration. There is a strong need for a structured platform that can convert India’s proven agricultural innovations, agribusiness models, technical expertise, and institutional learnings into scalable Africa-focused partnerships.

To address this opportunity, Indian Chamber of Food and Agriculture from India and the Empowering Farmers Foundation, promoted by ETG Group from Tanzania, propose to jointly establish the India–Africa Agricultural Business Forum (IABF) as a high-level multi-stakeholder platform to facilitate business and institutional cooperation and partnerships, and farmer to farmer exchange and learnings.

The Forum will bring together 20 leading stakeholders from India and 20 from Africa to catalyse partnerships in agribusiness, agro trade, seed and inputs, farm projects, agri technology transfer, farmer capacity building, and investment-led rural transformation.

India–Africa Agricultural Business Forum

Objective of the Forum

The India–Africa Agricultural Business Forum (IABF) is being jointly launched by the Indian Chamber of Food and Agriculture (ICFA), New Delhi and the Empowering Farmers Foundation (EFF), Tanzania, with support from the World Agriculture Forum (WAF) under its Africa Initiative and the African-Asian Rural Development Organization (AARDO).

The primary objective of the Forum is to establish a dedicated platform to promote corporate partnerships, business collaborations, and investment linkages between India and Africa in the agriculture and allied sectors. The Forum aims to facilitate revenue-generating opportunities, scalable agribusiness ventures, and long-term commercial engagements, while strengthening institutional cooperation and market access across both regions.

Core Objectives

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The Forum will focus on the following strategic objectives:
  • 1. Nutrition Security through Africa Collaboration Advancing nutrition-sensitive agriculture and diversified food systems through India–Africa cooperation to improve food and nutrition security.
  • 2. Seeds Systems as a Catalyst of Agricultural Growth Strengthening seed ecosystems through quality production, innovation, and partnerships to enhance productivity and resilience.
  • 3. Digital Agriculture and Smart Farming Solutions Leveraging digital platforms, data-driven advisory, and AI-enabled tools to enhance farm efficiency, traceability, and financial inclusion.
  • 4. Farm Mechanisation for Enhanced Productivity Promoting accessible and scalable mechanisation models, including smart technologies and service-based solutions, to improve farm efficiency.
  • 5. Agri Trade and Market Development Strengthening structured trade linkages, market access, and value chain integration to enhance India–Africa agricultural trade and marketing systems.
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Strategic Pillars

The Forum’s work program may be organised around the following pillars:
  • Policy and institutional cooperation
  • Investment and project facilitation
  • Farmer capacity development
  • Technology transfer and localization
  • Agri innovation and startup collaboration
  • Agri innovation and startup collaboration
  • Agri-inputs local production, and India sourcing
  • Digital agriculture and precision farming
  • Trade and market for Africa Agro Commodities
  • Farmers Organisation building and industry partnerships

Stakeholder Categories

  • Agribusiness companies
  • Development institutions
  • Farmer organizations and cooperatives
  • Seeds and Input companies
  • Agri-Tech and mechanisation companies.
  • Food processors and exporters
  • Agri Commodity traders and exporters
  • Financial institutions and impact investors
  • Agri-tech and digital platforms
  • Development partners and foundations
  • Research and extension institutions
  • Government-linked agencies

Proposed Structure Membership

A curated 15-member founding forum, comprising:
  • 10 stakeholders from India
  • 05 stakeholders from Africa

Vision

To create the premier India–Africa platform for accelerating farmer prosperity, agribusiness growth, food systems modernization, and rural enterprise development through partnerships, technology transfer, trade, and scalable projects.

Mission

To leverage India’s agricultural strengths, innovations, institutions, and farmer-centric development models for rapid empowerment of African farmers and agribusiness ecosystems.

Key Program Components (2026–27)

The event will feature a blend of keynote presentations, panel discussions, and interactive sessions, ensuring a rich exchange of theoretical knowledge and practical insights. The aim is to create a dynamic environment where participants can learn, engage, and collaborate.

  • India–Africa Agribusiness Partnership Desk -
    A dedicated facilitation desk for project matchmaking, B2B partnerships, and cross-border investment support.
  • India Learning Missions for African Delegations-
    Immersion visits around:
    • Dairy cooperatives
    • FPO ecosystems
    • seed systems
    • horticulture clusters
    • fisheries and aquaculture
    • agri export zones
    • digital agriculture platforms
    • agri startups and incubators
  • Africa Demonstration Projects-
    Pilot projects in selected African countries on:
    • seed multiplication
    • bio-input production
    • mechanisation hubs
    • digital advisory systems
    • market-led FPO models
    • farmer service centres
  • India–Africa Farmer Leaders Exchange-
    Cross-learning among farmer leaders, cooperative champions, women entrepreneurs, and young agri innovators. Providing them training at important institutions and companies in India, and providing field exposure will be aggressively done.
  • India–Africa Inputs and Commodity Trade -
    Facilitating sourcing of high quality seeds and inputs, technologies and learning from India to boost up farm productivity, till the time local production supported by Indian expertise becomes sufficient. Also facilitating the trade and sourcing of agro commodities from the farmers in Africa by lining up commodity traders and industries.
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Expected Outcomes

Within the first 24 months, the Forum aims to deliver:

  • 10+ India–Africa agribusiness partnerships
  • 5-7 country-level pilot projects
  • 50,000+ farmers reached through training and digital advisory
  • 15-20 exposure visits and learning missions
  • 5-8 seed and bio-input production partnerships
  • 3-5 mechanisation and digital agriculture pilots
  • Scalable FPO/cooperative demonstration models
  • measurable improvement in farmer incomes and market access
  • Sourcing of seeds and inputs from India, and agro commodities from Africa @ $200-300 million

Proposed Launch Elements

  • Ministerial and institutional inaugural session
  • India–Africa Roundtable on Agriculture
  • Development partners strategy dialogue
  • Signing of cooperation intents/MoUs
  • Announcing the first pilot country program
  • Announcement of exposure visit calendar

About Indian Chamber of Food and Agriculture (ICFA)

Indian Chamber of Food and Agriculture (ICFA), recognized by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, is the apex national body working on policy advocacy, trade facilitation, technology promotion, and agribusiness development.

ICFA serves as a global platform for partnerships, investments, and stakeholder engagement across the food and agriculture sector. Through its sectoral working groups and international collaborations, ICFA addresses emerging challenges, enables innovation, and strengthens India’s global engagement in agriculture, food systems, and sustainability.

Why ICFA and Empowering Farmers Foundation

This partnership uniquely combines:
  • ICFA’s leadership in India’s food and agriculture policy, industry, and farmer ecosystem
  • ETG Group’s deep African market presence and farmer engagement networks through the Empowering Farmers Foundation

Together, the co-hosts can create a highly credible, action-oriented platform that moves beyond dialogue into projects, trade, investments, and measurable farmer impact.