Ecological Organic Agriculture (EOA) is a holistic system of food production. It sustains the health of ecosystems and relies on functional natural cycles that are adapted to local conditions, as opposed to synthetic inputs that are likely to have adverse impacts on our the environment. It is critical that food production takes into consideration growing concern over on the need to conserve the environment for the sake of future generations. For EOA, sustainability, biodiversity and ecosystems are key dimensions that are considered in food production.

EOA is well grounded in research, in addition to enjoying global recognition as an effective and efficient means of food production. It relies on traditional knowledge, as recognized by the Convention on Biological Diversity. In addition to this, food produced from EOA is perfect for the current health conscious population. Demand for healthy organic products on national, regional and international markets is on the rise. This means that EOA also makes perfect economic sense.

The EOA Initiative seeks to address obstacles that stand in the way of the development of ecological agriculture in Africa, in order to empower the continent. Key amongst these challenges is absence of an enabling framework of policies and systems for sustainable, resilient and productive farming systems. Investment in ecological organic agriculture is low. Institutional capacity amongst different actors also remains inadequate, coupled with absence of sufficient coordination and networking amongst stakeholders. Many gaps still exist in research on ecological organic agriculture, leading to poor linkages with industry.

All these are challenges that the EOA Initiative is working towards addressing in order to ensure that ecological organic agriculture thrives. The ultimate goal is to mainstream ecological organic agriculture into African countries’ national agricultural production systems by 2025. The EOA Initiative has assembled a broad range of stakeholders from across disciplines and geographies, and supported by global partners, in order to drive this agenda.

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