SIALO 2026 : L’AGRICULTURE AFRICAINE FACE AUX DÉFIS CLIMATIQUES ET AUX NOUVELLES OPPORTUNITÉS — Transcript

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1. 0:08Today, the future of African
2. 0:10agriculture is being built around major
3. 0:13challenges, but also new opportunities.
4. 0:17In Lomé, producers, breeders,
5. 0:19processors, researchers, and investors
6. 0:22meet to imagine sustainable solutions.
7. 0:27It is the 13th edition of the Lomé
8. 0:29International Agriculture and Agri-food
9. 0:31Fair, SIALO 2026. On the occasion of
10. 0:36the official opening of this new
11. 0:38edition of the Lomé International
12. 0:40Agriculture and Agri-food Fair. First
13. 0:45and foremost, I would like to sincerely
14. 0:48congratulate the organizers for this
15. 0:51initiative, which helps bring together
16. 0:54stakeholders from various agricultural
17. 0:57and agri-food value chains, promote the
18. 1:00expertise of our producers and
19. 1:02processors, and create new partnership
20. 1:06and business opportunities. The theme
21. 1:21chosen for this year, "Agricultural and
22. 1:24animal production in the face of
23. 1:27climate change: opportunities for a
24. 1:29secure food system in Africa," is at
25. 1:32the heart of the government's concerns.
26. 1:38Climate change is a major challenge
27. 1:40that the agricultural sector is facing
28. 1:42this year. It constitutes a major
29. 1:48concern for the future of humanity,
30. 1:51with implications for food security,
31. 1:54the environment, biodiversity, and
32. 1:57health. Our commitment to the
33. 2:01agricultural sector is a tangible
34. 2:03reality today. Through our support and
35. 2:07training programs, we encourage the
36. 2:09adoption of sustainable farming
37. 2:11practices, agroecology, modern
38. 2:13livestock farming, agri-food processing
39. 2:15, and youth agricultural
40. 2:16entrepreneurship. Over the past three
41. 2:21years, our Agribusiness Boot Camp
42. 2:23program has trained more than 1,100
43. 2:25young people in market gardening,
44. 2:28poultry farming, fish farming, and
45. 2:30nursery techniques, with the provision
46. 2:33of kits to facilitate their practice
47. 2:35upon returning to their communities.
48. 2:39Officially launched on October 20 at
49. 2:41the Togolese Center for Exhibitions and
50. 2:44Fairs in Lomé, SIALO brings together
51. 2:46exhibitors from Togo and several other
52. 2:48countries, notably Niger, Benin, Mali,
53. 2:51Ivory Coast, and France. SIALO serves
54. 2:56as a platform for showcasing
55. 2:58agricultural and animal potential,
56. 3:01promoting local products, and bringing
57. 3:04value chain stakeholders closer
58. 3:07together. It fosters trade exchanges,
59. 3:13the sharing of experience, the
60. 3:16presentation of innovations, and the
61. 3:19creation of partnerships. We are now at
62. 3:23the 13th edition. This reveals a vital
63. 3:26resilience to continue, for which I
64. 3:29congratulate the General Commissioner
65. 3:32of SIALO as well as the entire
66. 3:35organizing team. Over the years, this
67. 3:39fair has established itself as a
68. 3:40concrete platform for visibility,
69. 3:42networking, and access to business
70. 3:44opportunities. It thus meets an
71. 3:47essential expectation of professional
72. 3:50organizations and agri-food SMEs. To
73. 3:54make their products known, meet
74. 3:56partners, and conquer new markets.
75. 4:02Beyond the exhibition, SIALO is a space
76. 4:04for meeting and sharing experiences.
77. 4:07Stakeholders present their innovations,
78. 4:09develop their networks, and explore new
79. 4:12business opportunities. This edition
80. 4:14also highlights the expertise of
81. 4:16livestock farmers, the creativity of
82. 4:19processors, and the entrepreneurial
83. 4:21potential of youth and women. Panels
84. 4:24dedicated notably to poultry farming
85. 4:27and discussions on transforming food
86. 4:29systems further enrich this dynamic.
87. 4:35The idea behind this panel was to
88. 4:37provide our youth, the brave Togolese
89. 4:39youth, with some insights into the
90. 4:42agricultural sector in general, and the
91. 4:45entrepreneurial sector as well, to give
92. 4:47them all the necessary rudiments and
93. 4:50foundations to enable them not to be
94. 4:52afraid and to venture into the
95. 4:55livestock sector. Because you know that
96. 4:58here in Togo, the level of poultry
97. 4:59imports has reached a certain point. We
98. 5:05thank the organizers of this trade fair
99. 5:08who are giving us prominence this year,
100. 5:12and I think the masterclass we attended
101. 5:15this afternoon really awakened the
102. 5:17minds of the young people who came to
103. 5:20watch, as well as the panel I
104. 5:23personally participated in. We tried to
105. 5:28provide insights for those who had
106. 5:30questions on their minds.
107. 5:34>> The future of African agriculture does
108. 5:37not depend solely on what the Earth can
109. 5:39produce, but also on our ability to
110. 5:41innovate, cooperate, and preserve our
111. 5:43resources. At the event, the exchanges
112. 5:47continue, and with them, the
113. 5:48opportunities to grow the agriculture
114. 5:50of tomorrow.