African Food Changemakers says it is committing to building a network of one million entrepreneurs across Africa’s agrifood landscape, as part of efforts to strengthen food security, climate resilience and SME growth across the continent.
The pan-African non-profit organisation made this known in Abuja during its 2025 End-of-Year Agri-Food Entrepreneurs Mixer, an event that brought together agribusiness founders, policymakers and ecosystem stakeholders to reflect on progress and chart strategies for the future of Africa’s food systems.
The organisation said the initiative is designed to enable small and medium-sized enterprises to thrive across the agrifood value chain, while addressing persistent challenges around food production, access and sustainability. It noted that strong agrifood SMEs remain central to employment creation, rural development and economic resilience across Africa.
African Food Changemakers disclosed that it currently has more than 8,500 members drawn from 49 African countries, describing itself as a female-founded, pan-African organisation working at the intersection of entrepreneurship, innovation and storytelling to strengthen Africa’s food ecosystem.
The organisation said its work focuses on supporting smallholder farmers, youth-led agribusinesses and women operating across agriculture and food processing, adding that strategic partnerships and targeted programmes will be critical to achieving its one-million-entrepreneur goal.
It stressed that agriculture remains both a national and continental priority, noting that the mixer was not merely a social event but a platform to spotlight the people, policies, and enterprises shaping Africa’s food security, job creation, and economic resilience.
According to the organisation, many SMEs operating in the agrifood sector lack access to the networks required to grow sustainably. By bringing entrepreneurs together across countries and sub-sectors, African Food Changemakers said businesses can exchange knowledge, share solutions to common challenges, and collaborate in ways that turn structural constraints into opportunities.
It said the organisation was created to provide African agrifood SMEs with access to peer networks, market intelligence, funding opportunities, and policy engagement needed to scale operations beyond local markets. In many cases, it noted, entrepreneurs require exposure to peers in other countries who are navigating similar constraints and have developed practical solutions that can be adapted locally.
African Food Changemakers explained that the annual mixer is intended to celebrate agrifood entrepreneurs, strengthen collaboration across the ecosystem, and draw attention to the often-overlooked contribution of SMEs to Africa’s food systems. It noted that these businesses operate across the value chain, from input supply and production to processing, marketing, and distribution, forming the backbone of food availability across the continent.
At the event, stakeholders also highlighted structural constraints limiting agricultural productivity, particularly access to land and infrastructure. It was noted that Nigeria has millions of hectares of arable land, with only a fraction currently under cultivation, a gap that continues to limit output and investment in the sector.
Participants called for the establishment of an infrastructure development fund to support land preparation and improve access to farmland, arguing that expanding cultivated land would allow farmers and agribusinesses to operate across multiple locations, boost productivity and contribute to improved security in rural areas.
African Food Changemakers said building a resilient agrifood ecosystem requires coordinated action across entrepreneurs, financiers and government, stressing that empowering SMEs remains one of the most effective pathways to achieving sustainable food systems and inclusive economic growth across Africa.
